Last Chance At Humanity
by iceandfire105
Summary: Kathryn Weiss is someone who shouldn't be messed with. She knows that, too. However, when throwing the curse of the worgen into the mix, she may just lose her mind completely right when she needs it the most, as her homeland Gilneas faces attack from the Forsaken. The only light in this situation is the man she meets: Liam Greymane. Worgen starting experience. EDITED.
1. Lockdown!

**NOTE: Absolutely NOTHING that may happen in the game involving any of these characters after the starting experience happens. So, keep that in mind as you read.**

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**Edit - 24/9/15: Disregard that previous statement. Only _some_ of the stuff that occurs elsewhere will happen, because I'm writing a sequel :D**

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**Hey!**

**So here I am with the worgen starting experience. I've been dying to write this story for ages, though I told myself I wouldn't even _touch_ it until I'd finished the goblin one. **

**If you couldn't already tell, I named this story after one of the quests in the starting experience. **

**So, make sure you review, and I hope you enjoy!**

**Cheers!**

**~Ice.**

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_**Introduction**_

_Led by their indomitable king, Genn Greymane, the proud citizens of Gilneas once stood with the Alliance against the vile, orcish Horde that sought to conquer all of Lordaeron. Gilneas survived, but in the chaotic years following the Second War, the mighty kingdom drew ever inward. Distrustful of their former allies, the Gilneans erected a mighty wall at the borders of their land, closing off their nation, and their hearts, from an ever-darkening world. _

_Now, many years later, as the seemingly unstoppable Undead Scourge marches across Lordaeron, human civilisation once again teeters on the brink of destruction. As war and terror close in all around them, the citizens of Gilneas are faced with one terrible truth – their mighty wall cannot hold back the dead for much longer. And worse, rumours of a new threat have risen within the kingdom's borders – of feral, nightmare creatures, that walk upright as men, but hunt and howl as wolves._

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_**1 – Lockdown!**_

**Kathryn**

Kathryn decided screaming was her least favourite sound.

There was something about the numerous clashing notes that set her teeth on edge, and all too frequently made her want to tear her hair out.Though she was sure she wasn't alone with this opinion, she certainly felt like it sometimes.

However, screaming was understandable at the present moment. The whole city was under evacuation. And, no, it wasn't the Undead. For once. Instead, a new threat – one that had merely been rumours and old nursemaid tales in the past - had emerged.

Looking at the situation, Kathryn felt rather relaxed. She was tough. She'd make it through.

She was idly hanging about the Merchant Square, leaning against a post and watching on as civilians fled. At the other end of the square, Mr _Oh So Important_ Prince Liam Greymane was organising a military defence with what men they had. Contemplating the thought, Kathryn inspected the knife she held loosely in her hand, before scratching off a speck of dried blood. She looked up at the men, and even at this distance she could hear the prince speaking; keeping them on their guard.

'Stand ready, guards!' he shouted. 'We don't know how many intruders we're dealing with, but the Headlands are overrun and we're cut off from the harbor towns. Expect to be outnumbered.'

These simple words made her quirk a solitary eyebrow. Outnumbered, eh? Not if she could help it. Straightening up and slipping her knife inside her jacket, Kathryn pulled her long, gold-brown hair out of her face with a strip of fabric and tied it back, before casually making her way over to them.

At the sound of her approaching footsteps, the prince adjusted his position on his horse and turned to regard her. His strongly-built face was tense, like he was ready for anything. That would have made sense. Rumour had it that the Greymanes were battle-hardened, and expected the worse of any situation. That was, of course, what the stories said, anyway. He surveyed her with hazel eyes.

'What are you still doing here, citizen?' he asked. 'Haven't you heard? The city's under complete lockdown.'

Kathryn folded her arms. 'Yes, I've heard,' she said stiffly, letting a heavy note of irritation ring clear in her tone. She didn't care in the slightest that he was royalty, or that she ought to be kneeling at his metaphorical feet. As far as she was concerned, he could fall off a cliff and she'd merely watch on, counting the seconds until he hit the ground. 'It'd be a bit difficult not to notice.'

Completely disregarding her impertinence, he pointed towards the north-west, his expression clearly saying he had no time for her. 'Go see Lieutenant Walden - he'll give you further directions for evacuation.'

With a small huff – she'd been hoping to get her hands dirty and have a jab at some feral monsters – Kathryn pivoted on her heel and took the wide path between two buildings. She turned left, and stopped. She was out of sight of the guards now, and that was probably why this hadn't been noticed before.

Three bodies, all drowning in pools of their own blood, were strewn on the cobblestone street. Hesitantly, Kathryn approached the one closest to the gate, whom she assumed to be Lieutenant Walden. Deep claw marks ran through the man's corpse. He appeared to have died from severe wounds.

Frowning, Kathryn prodded him with her foot and cocked her head contemplatively as more blood oozed along the damp road. It was an interesting thing, blood. She found metallic, coppery scent unique, and the thickness somewhat fascinating. She hadn't the faintest idea why, but it always kept her attention. And, with that considered, the prince would probably want to know about what had happened.

The sound of fighting started coming from the market, and she whirled around, sprinting back down the street. When she skidded into the square, it was filled with feral, wolf-like creatures, standing upright on two legs. The guards and the prince were fighting them off.

Wanting to help, Kathryn drew her knife and stuck it into the nearest beast's gut, swiftly withdrawing it and running over to the prince. He was slicing through several at once, drops of blood flecked up the side of his face and neck.

'Seems you're doing alright,' she commented idly, running to his side and jumping up to stick a monster through its throat.

'It's you again,' he said, looking down at her from his horse through blows. 'Looks like you're not one to hide in the face of danger. Very well, then.' He regarded her for another second. 'You're short, but you'll do. The worgen probably won't even see you.'

For once, Kathryn ignored the jab at her height (she got them quite often. She was only four foot eight), and instead posed a question. 'Worgen?'

'My father had warned me that Archmage Arugal's creations had run amok.' He looked around the square and up the rooftops. The beasts seemed to be everywhere. 'But where are they coming from?'

He refocused on her. 'I suppose it doesn't matter. Help us make quick work of them. We'll show them what we Gilneans are made of!'

Huh. He obviously wasn't an idiot. His morals were seemingly in the right place, and that caught her off guard for a short moment. However, she processed what he'd said quickly enough and responded in due time. She gave him a firm nod, meeting his eyes with a look she hoped was fiery enough to make him think twice about her, and snatched up an axe from atop a stack of nearby crates. She charged into the fray, chopping and hacking at everything in her path. The wolf men were strong, but she was fast, with the light-footedness and wit of a rogue. Regardless, no matter how many she killed, their numbers appeared to be endless.

'Kathryn Weiss! Well I'll be damned!'

Kathryn whirled around to see an all too familiar face. 'Gwen!'

Gwen Armstead gave a wry smile, coming to her side and ramming her sword into a worgen's gut. 'Fancy seeing you here!'

Kathryn had to note that even in the middle of battle, her nifty little hat was still perched on top of her dark brown hair. Completely different to Kathryn, she was dressed in a simple black, grey and white cotton dress, which was already torn from some blows she had sustained. Kathryn instead was wearing knee length, skin tight pants, a plain grey top, and a leather jacket she had stolen a long time back. Everything was frayed and dirty – living in the streets, it wasn't like she had the time to do her own laundry. Though, being who she was, she supposed at least she knew quite a lot of people, Gwen included. Before she died, Kathryn's mother was incredibly close to the woman, and she had offered to take the eight year old girl under her wing. Kathryn had obliged until she was fifteen, before she insisted on leaving and fending for herself. She had done that now for four years. Gwen hadn't been too happy with the state she was in most of the time, but personally she didn't really mind. It was comfortable, and she always dropped by Gwen's place in Duskhaven for dinner, before taking to the streets again.

'Listen, Kathryn,' Gwen said, a serious look coming across her face. 'We can't let our supplies get destroyed. With Gilneas walled off from the outside world, we won't last through winter if we lose much more of our stock. Please help me salvage what you can.'

Being the mayor of Duskhaven, Gwen was someone who had the best interests of her people at heart. So, naturally, the thought of losing an entire season's worth of supplies was crippling, and needed to be acted against.

Looking around the square, through the commotion Kathryn could see a stack of crates against a building. 'Those supplies?'

Swinging her sword around and wildly cutting off a worgen's head, Gwen gave her confirmation. 'Those supplies.'

And so, Kathryn ducked down low (she was even closer to the ground now) and sprinted straight across the market. She didn't think anything even noticed her.

In a matter of seconds, she had skidded up beside the crates and had started pushing them back to Gwen, only pausing to fight off the constant stream of beasts.

She didn't even really have to go halfway.

'Excellent!' Gwen said, appearing next to her, a fresh cut on her cheek. 'I'll make sure these get taken to a safe place.'

'Good enough for me.'

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'It's no use, Kathryn,' the prince said, looking down at her again. Mind you, he only knew her name because she told him. She didn't _usually _go around telling good-looking people her name. It was a mere few minutes after she had been talking to Gwen, and she had only paused to evacuate a few citizens from their houses, slaying the worgen that were already chasing them out. Gwen had left with them, as a group. 'They're not letting up.'

'And what do you propose we do?' She folded her arms and gave him a look that said:_ Go on. Use that princely brain of yours. I _dare_ you._

'It's time for you to leave,' he said, responding to that look in turn. In fact, if she didn't know better, she could have sworn it said: _I'll do that. And unless you've got any better propositions, you'd better bloody well listen to what I have to say_. 'Go to the Military District with the other civilians. Check in with Gwen Armstead when you cross the southeastern bridge. . . see if everyone's okay. I will stay here with the guards and cover the civilians' retreat.' He gave her a stern look, effectively sealing the intention of his earlier expression. 'Go now. That is an order!'

Well. It was like he already knew she was notorious for being disobedient and unruly. The thought made her grin inwardly, and she leant down to pick up a discarded, bloodstained knife from off the street as though to make a point. One could never have too many of those, after all. The prince watched this simple action with an unreadable look, before pointedly nudging his head in the direction she was supposed to go. She was almost tempted to tell him to get screwed, but her sense got the better of her and she gave him a mock salute.

She supposed she should follow directions for _once_ in her life. It probably wouldn't kill her, after all.

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**Review!**

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**Last edited: 15/1/16  
**


	2. Old Divisions

**Back again, and I'm getting into it now.  
**

**Many thanks to the one person who favourited and followed. I hope as I go along, more people will do the same.**

**Make sure you review before you go please, guys.**

**Cheers!**

**~Ice**

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_**2 – Old Divisions  
**_

**Liam**

Liam watched Kathryn's retreating back as she disappeared into the throng, and finally let a look of surprise cross his face.

Was that woman even _real?_

He had made it through an entire conversation, and for the first time in his life (much to his relief) the term "Your Majesty" wasn't dropped even once. And alongside that, she had glared at him with enough ferocity to set fire to a small navy, before casually picking a weapon up off the street and waltzing off without a backwards glance. She didn't seem to give a damn about anything that crossed her path, let alone royalty. Liam found it refreshing. If only there was a larger portion of people with spunk like that, maybe Gilneas would be a marginally more interesting place.

If only, _if only_.

She was an interesting figure, strangely enough. When Liam had finally taken a proper look at her, she'd caught him off guard. _It was the eyes_, he told himself. For most Gilneans, brown was the dominant iris colour, and he himself was an oddity with his hazel ones, inherited from his mother, Mia. But Kathryn's – they were hard to describe. They were like a mix of bright blues and greens, all swirled together to make them particularly startling. And they were always angry-looking.

However, that might have been just his fault; he'd never know.

The chances of him seeing her again were next to nothing. She would be swept up in the evacuation and he would have to leave with his family, not to return from the manor for Light knows _how_ long. It was ridiculous for him to hope, and he couldn't find a logical reason as to why he should try. He didn't believe love at first sight was possible (at least, he didn't _think_ that's what he believed), and even if that was the case, she clearly didn't return the slightest trace of emotion.

However, he was a Greymane. Stubbornness was in his blood, so losing track of her in a crowd of people probably wouldn't stop him.

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**Kathryn**

They hadn't just targeted the Market Square. The worgen were everywhere; in the streets, on the rooftops, and in the buildings. Chaos reigned.

Running through and leaving a trail of slaughter in her wake, Kathryn swung wildly with her axe, which had long since become bloodied. The Military District was southeast of the market, over a bridge. Kathryn followed the path she had taken many times before , weaving down streets and alongside buildings, before she spotted Gwen and the rest of those that had been evacuated from the square.

'Gwen!' she called, running over. She looked up and gave a wan smile.

'We're all fine here,' she reassured. 'A little shaken . . . but alive.'

Kathryn gave a steady exhale. Good. Royal or not, the prince would have skinned her alive if they weren't okay.

'Most of us made it here intact,' Gwen continued. 'But there are worgen on this side of the city as well.'

Kathryn raised her arms, her palms facing outwards as a feeling of slight irritation took her. 'You _think?_'

Gwen's nose twitched slightly. 'We're going to continue heading south once everyone's accounted for.' She paused for a moment, before, with a small smile, mentioned another thing. 'That reminds me, someone was asking about you. A woman named Loren . . . she seemed a little disappointed when I told her you were all right.'

Oh, _Loren_. Fellow street-rat or not, Kathryn wasn't surprised that the other woman had been hoping for her to be out-of-commission, or even dead.

'I think she mentioned she owes you money,' Gwen said, smirking.

With a dramatic breath, Kathryn gave an all-knowing nod. 'Well, now that you bring that up, she _does,_ doesn't she? Perhaps I should pay Loren a visit?'

'Just stay alive, girl, okay?'

Kathryn brushed away her comment with a flick of her hand, turning on her heel, her eyes already searching for Loren. 'I'll be fine. You know I will.'

'Come back in one piece, or your mother will personally rise from her grave to haunt me.'

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'Erm . . . Good to see you alive!'

Kathryn crossed her arms. 'I'm sure, Loren.'

Loren the Fence shrugged slightly. 'I suppose it's alright from an angle.'

Dressed in similar (and just as stolen) attire to Kathryn, Loren was in passably good condition compared to most. Her fawn coloured jacket that fit snugly to her thin frame was slightly more tattered than usual, her black trousers were held up with a thick, leather belt, and one of her calf-height black boots was torn so badly that the one on her left foot just came above her ankle. Her long, blue-black hair was kept back from her face in a messy braid. Her dark brown eyes sparkled slightly, like she was ready for any challenge, and more - eager for it.

The two women weren't friends, exactly, but more like allies who essentially worked together as a cohesive unit, stealing and training together.

Before Kathryn could say anything else, she raised both of her hands defensively. 'No, of course I don't have that gold I owe you. I just wanted to be aware if you were still in the land of the living.'

'So you wouldn't have to pay me back?'

'Sounds about right.'

Kathryn shook her head exasperatedly. 'What _am_ I going to do with you, Lor?'

'You're going to forget that I owe you, that's all.'

They both looked up as everyone began moving all at once. 'We really should think about heading south with the other survivors,' Loren said. 'We've been told that King Greymane is there. If we stick together our chances of survival will increase . . . especially if you pick someone nutritious-looking to stand next to.'

Kathryn bit her bottom lip and looked her up and down. 'Do you count as nutritious-looking?'

'_No!'_

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'Well I'll be damned,' Loren breathed. 'Is that . . ?'

'Greymane?' Kathryn supplied, feeling just as stunned.

'Yeah.'

Most of the Gilnean population could generally tell their ruler on sight, however Kathryn and Loren were among the few who couldn't. They never felt a need to attend celebrations where the king made his appearance, and because the concept of royalty generally made them lose their appetite for lunch, they chose to avoid thinking about it as much as possible. Though, that couldn't be helped right now.

Genn Greymane sat on his white steed, looking down at Gwen as she spoke, who had her arms crossed and was leaning slightly to one side, putting the weight on her right foot. Another man riding beside Greymane had a sour look on his face that didn't mix well with the monocle and top hat he was wearing. Kathryn recognised him as Lord Godfrey. As Kathryn and Loren approached, they all looked up to acknowledge them.

'Kathryn!' Gwen cried, evidently relieved. 'You took your sweet time.'

Kathryn absently shrugged, her eyes instead taking in the king. His hair was grey, about shoulder length, and his beard was slightly white. He had dark brown eyes, different to his son's, topped with thick, grey eyebrows. He was dressed in attire appropriate to his status; a patterned grey tunic with gold trimming, and a black, unbuttoned coat over the top with silver fastenings. A red and gold cloak resided on his shoulders, blowing slightly in the breeze behind him. One of his gloved hands held the reins of his steed, while the other rested on the silver hilt of his sword, which was sheathed at his belt.

'You've done well in coming here.' His voice was deep and slightly tired, but kind. It surprised Kathryn. 'If we Gilneans stick together we might yet defeat this terrible enemy.'

She blinked stupidly, not knowing how to respond to this motivational statement.

'I, erm,' she started, her tongue dysfunctional and her vowels feeble. Greymane didn't seem to notice, as his mind was obviously preoccupied by whatever was bothering him. 'Do you . . . do you need me to do something, erherm . . . si-_sire?_' She choked on the last word as it left her mouth, feeling marginally revolted at the sound of it. Eck.

The king met her eyes, and she swallowed lightly. Even though there was too much going on for her to worry about the gallows, Kathryn didn't exactly want to upset him.

'Lord Darius Crowley has been called many things,' he said. 'Rebel. Traitor. Terrorist.' He took a breath, and pain filled his eyes. 'Before the civil war I called him . . . friend.'

Kathryn paused. Darius? Lorna's father?

Lorna Crowley was perhaps the only actual friend Kathryn had that was her age. They had grown up alongside each other, even though Lorna didn't live in the city like Kathryn did. They had traded knowledge in their areas of expertise; Kathryn had shown her the ways of a knife, while Lorna taught her how to fire a blunderbuss. They were able to read each other's emotions without even needing to ask, and when the other girl lost her father to prison, Kathryn had shared her pain.

'You know him, I presume?' Greymane asked. When she nodded, he continued. 'I never blamed him for leading an insurrection against me. His land and people were separated from Gilneas by a stone wall . . . but we had no choice. Regardless . . . Crowley is exactly the type of person we need now.'

Kathryn knew what was coming now.

'Enter Stoneward Prison and ask Captain Broderick about Crowley's whereabouts. I'd send my own men, but there's still bad blood.'

Godfrey blanched. 'We ought to leave Crowley in prison with those beasts!'

'Enough!' Greymane snapped. 'I've made up my mind. We need Crowley on _our_ side.' Grudgingly, Godfrey pursed his lips and guided his horse over to Kathryn, looking down on her.

'Fine by me if King Greymane wants you to risk your life to rescue a known traitor,' he muttered to her. 'Do me a favour and do something useful while you're out there and kill these cursed fleabags.'

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Captain Broderick was shocked to say in the least. 'Greymane wants to save Crowley?' he cried, aghast. 'Has he gone mad?'

It had taken a while to track down the prison, but Kathryn found it in the end. It was a tall, rounded building, and the inside was taken up completely by a spiral staircase. She assumed that the prisoners were kept either above or below, however above was looking like the more likely option at the moment. From outside, Kathryn had been able to tell that there was fencing up there, and obvious walkways.

Kathryn folded her arms. 'It's just _Crowley_,' she said flatly.

Broderick shook his head, his reddish-brown hair falling in his face. 'I don't understand why the king wants to waste time saving his hide, but if you want to risk your life, then be my guest.' He gestured up the staircase. 'Crowley and his men are holed up upstairs, probably plotting against the king as we speak!'

Kathryn waved him off with her hand. 'Don't be so dramatic,' she told him. 'I _know_ him. Stop being such an idiot about it.'

That comment left him slightly stunned, and without another word, Kathryn ran up the stairs.

She was right about the top. Instead of a peaked roof, the top of the prison had wooden walkways edged with high, iron fencing.

She had barely looked around however, before something heavy hit her in the chest and she was forced to the ground. Kathryn choked as she inhaled hot, disgusting breath, and she brought her fist up to smack the beast off her. It yelped and rolled sideways, and Kathryn had put her knife though its ribcage before it could do anything else. Getting to her feet, she scanned around, before her eyes set on a small group of men, all kneeling around something.

'Darius!' she yelled, wrenching out her blade and running over. Darius Crowley looked up, and the new addition to his appearance startled her slightly. A black eye patch resided over his right eye. His shoulder-length red hair was tangled, but he was still dressed in his usual attire; a blue and black cotton shirt, beige coloured trousers, a light purple cloak, and black boots. He rose to his feet when he saw her. '_Kathryn?_'

He ran over, his expression anxious. 'My Lorna; is she okay?'

Kathryn nodded. 'She was fine the last time I saw her, and that was this morning. But you're needed now. Greymane, he . . . well . . .'

Despite not finishing, Darius seemed to get the gist of it. 'Greymane's right.' His eyes searched along the rooftops, where some of the worgen could be seen in the distance. 'These beasts do not care what our political affiliations are. Gilneas needs to stand together.'

A groan came from behind him, and Darius whipped around. 'One of those mangy fleabags got Dempsey real good,' he told her. 'We cannot move him until we stabilize his bleeding. Give us a hand holding back these mongrels. A couple of minutes is all we need.' He made his way back to the group, where Kathryn could now see that they were all gathered around a shirtless man lying on the ground. The side of his slashed torso was completely red and covered in blood.

'Alright,' she said. Looking around, she could already see a pack of the beasts jumping from rooftop to rooftop, taking to the air like strange, lupine birds. Getting a firm grip on her knife, Kathryn charged forward to meet them.

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**Last edited: 15/1/16  
**


	3. The Rebel Lord's Arsenal

**Hello!**

**I wrote this whole chapter today, and just finished it, so you get an update now.**

**Remember to follow and review!**

**Cheers!**

**~Ice.**

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_**3 – The Rebel Lord's Arsenal**_

**Kathryn**

She slammed head-on into the first beast, violently gutting it and hardly noticing the blood that sprayed her face. Spitting out a mouthful of the hot, sticky stuff, she whirled around and lunged toward another, slashing at its throat. Darius was fighting at her side using only his fists, and Kathryn finished them off while they were mostly incapacitated.

They worked as a cohesive unit, with a few of Darius' other friends who joined in almost immediately. Only one of them stayed with Dempsey, who lay almost immobile but thrashed about occasionally as the other man attempted to help the damage some.

'Just give us a minute,' he yelled, applying pressure to the area. 'Getting there!'

Darius yelled something in response that Kathryn didn't hear, and smacked a worgen to the ground, cracking its skull under his boot.

Dempsey gave a roar of pain.

With a yell, Kathryn launched herself at another mongrel, and even though she was half of its height, she knocked it to the ground before repeatedly stabbing it in the chest. Without even really checking to see if it was dead, she dove onto another one.

They were almost through the pack; it was composed mostly of runts, smaller than the usual beasts. Still fighting just as brutally, Kathryn gave up on keeping a tally of how many she had killed.

'Clear!'

Grabbing Kathryn by the wrist, Darius shoved her back to the staircase. 'Go!' The other men hauled Dempsey up between them, and they carried him down into the street. The worgen didn't seem to be following. Darius turned to her and immediately drew her into a crushing embrace. It took Kathryn legitimately half a second to return the gesture, and they spent a short while in this position. 'We did it,' Darius finally said. 'Thanks to you a good man has survived.'

It had been a little over a year since Kathryn had last felt the comfort of a fatherly figure. Darius had always considered Kathryn his own as much as he did Lorna, and his imprisonment had an equal impact on her. 'It's been too long,' she mumbled back. 'I think your fighting technique's getting rusty, old man.'

And just like that, the emotional moment was broken as Darius burst into raucous laughter. 'Give me a day, Kathryn. Then we'll see.' He drew away and clapped her on the shoulder, before apparently remembering the position they were in and sobering.

'Listen, for the first time since the civil war I agree with Greymane. Now is the time to put aside our quarrel. It sure doesn't look like these beasts much care whether you're a rebel or a royal. Send word back to Greymane. My men will join his.' He gestured with his hand, pointing over towards one of the houses. 'There's a safehouse not far from here, in Josiah's cellar. My lads stashed some heavy artillery there. Tell our king that my arsenals are now at his disposal.'

* * *

'_Rebel arsenals?_ In my own city?' Greymane shook his head incredulously. 'What in the bloody hell was Crowley up to?'

He refocused on Kathryn. 'It is unnerving that artillery was smuggled inside the city by my enemies, yet it might end up saving Gilnean lives today. Find Josiah Avery and requisition the rebel artillery. We will put the weapons to good use.'

* * *

Kathryn stopped outside of the cellar of the house Darius had pointed out earlier. Looking at the trapdoor, she contemplated knocking, but that was only because there could be an armed man in there, ready to shoot the first thing that came in. Kathryn shrugged to herself. It didn't _really_ matter if she was shot . . .

She wrenched the doors open and found a staircase leading down. Taking it, she came out into a room stashed with cannons and other various forms of artillery. A man was cowering in a corner, clutching his head.

'What's wrong with me?' he bellowed, though whether it was in response to Kathryn's entrance, she didn't know. Hesitantly, she went to approach him. As he heard her footsteps, he gave a yell of pain. 'Don't look at me! Leave me alone!'

'Avery,' Kathryn started. 'I need the arti -'

Avery roared and whirled around, just as his face underwent the gruesome, morphing transition into a worgen's. Kathryn didn't even have time to react before he lunged at her, sinking his fangs into her arm in an attempt to tear out flesh. With a cry of pain, she threw a punch with her other fist in an attempt to knock him away.

A gunshot rang through the room, and Avery dropped on top of her, dead.

'Well I'll be damned . . .'

Kathryn flipped over, pulling herself out from under the corpse. 'Lorna!'

Lorna Crowley looked the same as she had that morning, dressed in her brown and cream coloured cotton dress, and holding her blunderbuss at her side. Her long black, curly hair tumbled freely down her back, and she swept a strand out of her brown eyes. Two mastiffs stood on either side of her; one tan coloured and the other grey.

Recognising her, Lorna dropped her blunderbuss and ran to embrace her. 'By the Light, Kathryn, it was _you!_' She pulled away and gave her a thorough once-over. 'You okay?'

Kathryn shrugged, ignoring the stinging pain in her right arm. She spared the wound a quick glance. Blood tricked out of the half-moon shaped crescents. The flesh around it was red, either from pressure or something else. 'It'll probably go away with time. I'll be fine.'

Looking disbelieving, Lorna didn't press any further. Instead, she looked over at the beastly corpse of Josiah Avery. 'He turned into one of them . . . didn't he?' She gave a steady exhale. 'How do we even begin to fight an enemy that can do this to us? My father's arsenal's certainly a good start, I suppose.'

'You've seen him?'

She nodded. 'Not ten minutes ago. It really makes a year seem like a long time . . .'

Kathryn looked around at the artillery. 'We're going to need to clear the way ahead if we're going to move these cannons above ground.'

Lorna nodded in agreement. 'I know worgen are hiding in the alleys ahead. I only saw them because of the dogs.' She gestured to the two mutts behind her. 'Take one of them if you're going through there.'

Hesitantly, Kathryn reached out to scratch the grey one behind the ears. It didn't growl, which was a good sign. 'Alright then. I'll be back.

* * *

The mastiff was far better than Kathryn expected it would be. It detected the worgen from thirty yards away, barking and charging at them as they made an attempt to pounce. With Kathryn's help, they didn't stand a chance. When she returned to the cellar, Lorna had already piled up most of the firearms outside on the street.

'Excellent,' she said, looking considerably happier. 'I'll start rounding up some help to get these cannons positioned.' She pointed back down into the cellar, where the weapons in question still were. 'It's time,' she continued. 'We'll take it from here. Tell Greymane that my father's arsenal will be at his disposal. There's more than enough firepower to blow the worgen from here to the North Sea.'

Fully believing that statement, Kathryn gave a small nod, and turned, navigating the streets back to Greymane, Gwen, and the survivors.

'Sire,' she said, skidding to a stop beside him. 'The artillery is ready.'

Greymane nodded in approval. 'I knew Crowley would come through. His weapons will be more than useful to us.' He shook his head, still obviously disbelieving. 'Crowley was hiding enough firepower in that cellar to level half the district. It might have to come to that, unfortunately.' He looked across the district, over the mass of worgen, which multiple guards were still fighting off. 'We can't open fire just yet, there is a civilian trapped on the other side of the prison. Not just any civilian, either. Krennan Aranas is one of the most brilliant alchemists this world has known.' He met Kathryn's eyes with a steady gaze. 'One of his potions saved my daughter, Tess, from dying soon after being born.' Sliding off his horse and landing on the ground, he still towered above her. 'I already trust your competence and fighting ability more than most. Take my horse and rescue him. Krennan must live.'

Kathryn blinked. 'Erm, my lord, I'm sure I can take another horse –'

'There is no time,' Greymane said, interrupting her. 'Take it.'

Feeling hesitant, Kathryn reached out and took the reins from the king's gloved hand, before pulling herself up onto the white steed and swinging one leg over, sliding comfortably onto its back. It didn't make her feel any better that the men were almost the same height as her while on the ground. But now, past the barricade and over the chaos, she could see a man dangling from a tree in the distance. Not even stopping to think, she snapped the reins and the horse broke into a full gallop.

Horse riding wasn't exactly her forte, but she wasn't too bad at it, either. Where Lorna lived, there were multiple mountain horses, and so at least she had learned.

The horse whinnied as some of the worgen began chasing them, but Kathryn ignored them, only focusing on the figure in the distance that was steadily getting closer. As she drew closer to the tree, she shouted out to the alchemist. 'Aranas!'

There was the strangled response of 'Help! Up here!' and Kathryn slowed down slightly as she and the horse passed right under him. Obviously knowing what to do, Krennan dropped down, landing on the horse just behind Kathryn. With a 'hi-ya!' and another snap of the reins, the horse looped around and started back across the district; back through the sea of mongrels.

The horse leapt over the barricade, and Krennan breathed a sigh of relief. 'Thank you,' he muttered. 'I owe you my life.'

Not exactly responding, Kathryn pulled up beside Lord Godfrey, as she could not see the king anywhere. As they both slid off the horse, Godfrey gave his praise. 'Well done, Kathryn. We'll make sure Krennan makes it out of the city alive.' He turned to the men who had lined up the rebel cannons just behind the barricade, and gave orders. 'We've got Aranas!' he bellowed. 'Fire at will!'

And with ground shaking explosions, the artillery fired at the masses of beasts, causing damage and destruction so incredible that Kathryn was shocked.

'We've done all we can here,' Godfrey said, looking back down at her. 'Let King Greymane know we've bought some time. I've a feeling it won't be long til the worgen are back in force. We'll need to fall back to Greymane Court, if that's the case. It's the last place we can hold out without being trapped like fish in a barrel.' He gestured towards the west, across a bridge over the canal.

* * *

When Kathryn finally found them – meaning the king, the prince, and Darius – the second one had obviously been waiting for her.

'You're actually alive,' he commented, sounding slightly surprised as he stood in front of her. Kathryn took the opportunity to absorb his beautiful facial features in all of their glory. Just because he was a royal didn't mean he couldn't be good looking. Most generally were, actually.

He had a strong jawline framed by his longish light brown hair, with nicely curved but slightly chapped lips. His nose was straight with a few almost unnoticeable freckles on the bridge. His hazel eyes looked as though they were generally full of amusement, and Kathryn had a feeling that the look would have suited him well. And, of course, he was dressed in clothing appropriate to his status; cloaks, jackets, boots – the lot.

Kathryn folded her arms and gave him a pointed look. 'Of _course_ I'm alive,' she said flatly. 'Though I'm surprised that _you_ are, Your _Highness_.'

That was all she needed to say. He gave a good natured laugh, and his eyes took that look she had been thinking about mere seconds before. 'Light, please don't. I really hate it. I'm just Liam.'

_Liam_. She tried the name, and found it rolled rather nicely off her tongue. 'Okay then, Just Liam,' she said, raising her hand to sweep a lock of hair out of her face.

He started to laugh, but got side-tracked, looking at her hand. 'What's that?' he asked.

'Hmm?'

He pointed to the jewellery on her left wrist. 'That.'

Kathryn brought her arm down and inspected the bracelet. It was a gold band, with a flat surface and a pattern of leaves engraved on it. 'Well,' she said. 'It was my mother's. Night Elves gave it as a gift to her and when she died, she left it to me.'

'Oh,' Liam said, suddenly looking a bit guilty. 'I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked.' She waved him off. 'Don't worry about it. It was a long time ago. I'm used to it now.'

Liam looked around, where Greymane and Darius looked as though they were engaged in a serious conversation. 'Come on,' he said. 'Let's go.'

He then casually took her hand and led her over, and Kathryn tried not to notice the nice feeling of it too much. Genn looked up as they approached.

'We're left with very few choices, Kathryn,' he said, addressing her. 'What we do next will be a critical decision.'

* * *

**I'm starting to sound like a broken record buuuut . . . REVIEW!**

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**Last edited: 15/1/16  
**


	4. Last Stand

**Hey!**

**Back with another chapter.**

**Please review, and I hope you enjoy!**

**Cheers!**

**~Ice.**

* * *

_**4 – Last Stand**_

**Lorna**

'Tobias?'

The sturdy man turned from the giant cannon he was pushing to regard Lorna. 'Miss Crowley,' he said, inclining his head slightly. Lorna pulled a face.

'For the last time, can you stop calling me that? It's just Lorna.'

Tobias Mistmantle gave a small smile. 'Reckon I'll have to think about that one.' Lorna resisted the urge to brush his silvery-brown hair behind his ear. Instead, she posed a question.

'Where are you moving this?'

'The cathedral. Darius wants us to barricade ourselves in there and blow the worgen up.'

Lorna frowned. She didn't like the idea, but it was evidently the only option. 'Tell father I'm waiting for him.'

'Will do, miss.'

'_Tobias._'

* * *

**Kathryn**

Turning back to Darius, Greymane began addressing the situation. 'If we can make it past the gates into Duskhaven we'll be safe. The eastern mountains are virtually impassable.'

Darius shook his head. 'We need to keep the worgen's attention in the city, Genn. It's the only shot we have for the survivors to make it to Duskhaven.'

Liam released his gentle hold on Kathryn's hand and stepped forward. 'I'll stay behind with the Royal Guard, father. It is my duty to Gilneas.' Even though she barely knew him, Kathryn heavily disagreed with the idea. It was just too dangerous. She wasn't sure why, but . . . she was coming to realise that royalty might not be so puffed-up after all. So, maybe she actually cared if one of them died.

'Not a chance, boy,' Darius said, obviously having the same idea as her. 'Gilneas is going to need its king's undivided attention. Can't have your father wondering whether his child is alive or not.'

He looked over at Greymane. 'My men and I will hole up inside the Light's Dawn Cathedral. I've already given the order and the cannons are on their way. Lead our people well, Genn.'

'We were fools to take up arms against each other, Darius,' he replied. 'The worgen would've never stood a chance.'

Thinking over it all, Kathryn looked up at Darius, who towered above her. Well, they all did, so to speak, but his height was astounding. 'I'm coming with you.'

Liam put a hand on her shoulder and spun her around to face him. 'You couldn't possibly,' he said. 'If I'm not going, I don't think you should either.'

'Well, I don't have anyone to worry about me!' she shot back, feeling slightly angry. 'The only person left in the world I care about is Lorna, and she's okay. I don't see why I shouldn't!'

'I'm sure there are -'

'No, there isn't,' she interrupted, her voice low. 'And if you find someone who does, tell them they're crazy.'

'Excuse you? Are you saying _I'm_ crazy?' he asked quietly, and Kathryn blinked, surprised. What the _hell_ did that mean?

She gave him a once-over and studied the look he was giving her. There was something she considered to be a quiet irritation burning in the back of his eyes, masked by a layer of something else she couldn't quite decide. She nodded.

'Yes,' she replied. 'Completely.' And without giving him another say in the matter, she turned back to Darius.

'You don't have to do this, Kathryn,' the latter said. 'You've done more than enough already. But if you decide to stay . . . I'd be a fool to turn you away.'

Liam made an angry noise in the back of his throat.

'My men have fortified their position inside the cathedral and are ready for what comes next,' Darius continued. 'I'm about to head there and take as many of these flea-ridden devils with me as I can. You're welcome to come along for the ride.' He pulled himself up onto his brown and white horse, and extended his hand to her. Before she could take it however, someone had lifted her by the waist and sat her on the steed behind Darius. She looked around to see Liam giving her a rueful smile.

'It's a big horse,' he said in answer to her flushed glare. 'And you're a small girl. You might have had some trouble getting up on your own.'

If possible, Kathryn felt her face go even redder, and she turned her head away from him. What was with him and his need to have a poke at her height, anyway?

She only looked back when Liam muttered something in Darius' ear, the look on his face polar opposite to what it had been seconds ago. Darius responded with something she also didn't hear, and she crossed her arms, feeling disgruntled.

'Alright,' Darius said when Liam had moved away, looking over his shoulder at her. 'Let's round up as many of them as we can. Every worgen chasing us is one less worgen chasing the survivors.'

* * *

**Liam**

Liam watched them ride into the thick gathering of the beasts and turned away, an angry feeling taking over him. It was too dangerous. Kathryn was strong; be had seen that, but this . . . this was madness. The chance of her being killed was so much higher, and it would be his fault because he didn't convince her to stay.

No.

It would also be Crowley's if she didn't make it out alive.

Before, he had given the man a simple order: 'keep her safe.' Crowley had given a firm nod and replied, 'I've come to consider her my second daughter. No way in hell I would even_ let_ something happen to her.'

That had been good enough for him. Almost. The only thing better would have been if Liam went along for himself.

His father came up behind him and clapped a hand on his shoulder. 'Come on, boy. We need to get this evacuation together.'

Liam didn't move for a long moment, but stood and thought. But when Genn cleared his throat, he turned around and gave a small nod. 'Fine.'

* * *

**Kathryn**

Kathryn spent that trip tossing burning torches into the thickest groups of worgen.

Not. Fun.

Especially considering she nearly had her hand bitten off, and the pain that was gripping her muscles in violent bursts just topped it off nicely.

She didn't get where it was coming from. At one point these shocking spasms began making her arms jolt involuntarily, and Darius asked if she was okay. She told him she was fine, of course, but she wasn't so sure herself.

Then her spine felt like it was trying to click itself into another shape, and Kathryn deliberately forced her back to stay completely straight because of it. It was awkward when up on the horse, but she had to deal with it.

'Come and get us, you motherless beasts!' Darius bellowed.

At the present moment, they had a nice pack of followers. It was only when they had at least a hundred that Darius stopped looping around the city and instead brought the horse towards the cathedral's courtyard, which was also overrun.

The perimeter of the courtyard was surrounded by stone fencing, and the stairs that led up into the raised cathedral were barely holding out. A barricade defended by cannons had been set up, and the men Darius had obviously sent up were using them. The horse ran up the steps to the door, where Tobias Mistmantle was waiting. Darius slid off the horse and ran to the nearest cannon.

'Brace yourself, Kathryn,' Tobias said. 'Here they come. If we're going to put a dent in their numbers, the time is now. We have the position. We have the firepower. All that remains is to be seen is whether we have the courage . . . and I sure don't see a coward standing in front of me.'

'No you bloody well don't,' Kathryn returned sharply. 'Gimme one of them cannons.'

She spent a solid ten minutes behind one of those glorious war machines, revelling in the destruction each individual cannonball brought with it. Each ground-shaking bang was enough to make her cringe in sympathy for her ever-suffering ears, but the explosion two hundred yards off, and the worgen bodies sent flying were enough to compensate.

However, all good things had to come to an end.

'We're running low on ammunition for the cannons!' one of the rebels called from the machinery he was firing.

'It's time to regroup inside now!' Tobias yelled back, waving them in. He steered Kathryn through the double doors by the shoulder, and into the cathedral. The Northgate rebels followed in suit.

Darius made his way over to them and addressed Tobias. 'We've given them everything we have . . . yet still they come.' He shook his head incredulously, before turning to Kathryn. 'Do not worry, we'll slay many more before today is over.'

That was when the chaos began.

The worgen had broken through the barricade and were smashing through the door, shredding the wood like cloth. They howled and snapped, slashing at the men who were fighting them off, as more came in behind them.

'We've got a good chokepoint here, Kathryn,' Darius said. 'Feel free to say a prayer if that's your sort of thing. Take courage and let's kill these mutts.'

With a nod and another grimace as her head started pounding, Kathryn gripped her knife in her hand and charged into the fray, hacking and stabbing. The hunger, and the feral but intelligent nature she could see within these beasts caused her to show no mercy. Yet no matter how many she killed, they kept coming.

The wooden floor of the building was stained and bloodied, and savaged bodies lay either dying or already dead. She jumped onto a beast's back burying her knife deep into its throat before vaulting off and landing back on the ground. She didn't even stay around long enough to check if it was dead.

The numbers seemed to be thinning out now, and within seconds, the last worgen had been slain. The silence was horrible.

'They . . . they've stopped coming,' Darius muttered, looking worried. 'No, Kathryn,' he said, turning to her. 'That's not a good thing.'

That was when the pain took over. With a cry Kathryn dropped to her knees, clutching her head. She was hurting everywhere; her bones and joints felt like they were all breaking individually. Her skin was burning and her legs were shaking with violent spasms. The pounding beneath her skull had become indescribable, as though something huge were trying to burst from her head. The bite marks on her arm had begun bleeding, oozing saliva as well blood.

The giant, stained glass window set up high on the back wall shattered as a lupine figure crashed through it, swiftly followed by others.

Kathryn screamed and slipped forward, digging her fingernails into the floor as her spine arched. Her yelling became growling and her head fell forward, as her neck involuntarily shifted.

Her mind was going hazy; she couldn't think, she couldn't see. She didn't know who she was. She was still shaking.

Suddenly her vision sharpened, and that was when she let the beast take over.

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**Last edited: 15/1/16  
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	5. The Beast

**Hello!**

**Back again with an update.**

**Just to clear things up - sorry I forgot about this last chapter - but tmd126, no, I won't be sticking closely to the lore, not only because I would probably screw it up, but because some of the stuff I want to do would interfere. So, yes, I will keep with the starting experience storyline, but everything else goes out the window. **

**Anyways, read, review, and I hope you enjoy.**

**Cheers!**

**~Ice.**

* * *

_**5**__** – The Beast**_

The pack of feral animals ran through the woods, howling and snarling as they hunted their prey. The scent was fresh, and easily traceable in the mind of one. They could smell the fear, the desperation, the tiredness of it. It would slow down soon. Deer could only run for so long.

The darkness sharpened the animal's vision, and it could see where others could not. It was a night hunter, after all, and had strengths appropriate to that trait.

There was a terrified wail up ahead as the alpha of the pack leapt through the air with a snarl, and pounced, landing on what they had been hunting. There was the sound of ripping flesh, and a new smell filled the air.

Blood.

Chaos ensued and the whole pack fought to get to the meat, growling viciously. Only one of them hung back, determined not to let the bloodlust take over. If this one joined the fray, it would most likely be slain in the madness.

With a whimpering moan – it was still hungry, despite the control – the beast turned and ran into the thick of the woods, after new prey. Something whole where they would not just get leftover pickings.

Dried leaves and sticks crunched under its paws as it ran on all fours, head a-swivel and letting its nose lead it to its meal.

There was a faint trace of something in the air.

The beast paused and stood up on its two back legs, sniffing around.

Human.

With a howl, it dropped back onto its front feet and followed the scent, speeding up as it got stronger.

It got closer, and was able to discern that there was more than one.

Right when it was thinking about turning back; dealing with what had already been killed, something horribly painful clamped around its back left foot. Blood was drawn, and the beast threw its head towards the sky, crying out in agony.

It was surrounded by men with their guns and dogs, and a small dart was shot into the beast's hide. The world began to swim, going dark and hazy, and the howls turned into whimpers.

As another dart was fired, it collapsed into darkness, unable to stay awake any longer.

* * *

**Liam**

Stuffing his hands in his pockets, Liam kicked at the dirt, watching it float up in a small cloud before slowly descending back to the ground again. He looked over towards Duskhaven in the distance, only to turn his head away, feeling angry. Every _single_ time he looked at that place a torrent of emotions was unleashed within him. Not everyone made it. So many had died. So many lives had been lost. And not only was it those who had been slain in the evacuation, but the ones at the cathedral . . .

He took a steady breath and closed his eyes. He felt as though it were their blood on his hands; as though he could have done something to prevent it. He knew that wasn't the case, but that didn't change his personal take on the situation. It had been months ago, now, and he should have been over it. But still, the guilt that filled his chest was something awful.

Kathryn never made it back from that battle. Neither did Crowley though, so he couldn't be held to blame. None of them survived, and if they did, they hadn't been found.

He should have been there. He should have protected her, even though she looked like she was going to smack him upside the head if he tried. Or he should have convinced her not to go.

This was what he had been stewing over since it had happened, even though it was long since over. No matter how much he grew angry, he couldn't change it. Kathryn was gone now. Dead. Any hope he held on to had diminished.

He wondered if she would have appreciated the fact that he'd been mourning. She seemed like someone who didn't have a very positive opinion on royalty, and apparently didn't give a damn _who_ he was. And she didn't appear to like him very much. He had a feeling that if she knew, she would give him hell about it for a long time to come.

But that didn't stop him.

He had known her for about two hours, and he had already come to like her. And he missed her. A lot. If he had mentioned this out loud, he would have been told off, but he didn't care.

He hadn't taken it well when he had first realised it. When his father had voiced that Darius had not returned, Liam had grown concerned. Then, a matter of hours passed, and still nothing had happened. It was only when a scouting party had been sent out, that they came to face the bitter truth.

Accompanied by a small group of armed men, Liam had been sent to the cathedral. When they got there they were greeted by an empty building. The doors had been brutally ripped apart. Inside, they found the floor strewn with shattered glass, blood, and worse, a small number of half eaten corpses. It seemed that the worgen had found their fill with what was there. Desperately, Liam carefully looked over each one, trying to find a face that he knew – trying to find her. But in the end, he came away with nothing.

He didn't want to believe it. He searched the perimeter of the cathedral grounds, trying to find some trace of her, but yet again he failed. There was nothing there but ruin.

That was when it all finally fell upon him, heavy on his shoulders. He still carried that weight, even now.

Gently clenching and unclenching his fists, Liam closed his eyes. In the blackness, all he could see was Kathryn's blue-green ones staring back at him. They were something he would never forget; they had been burned permanently into his mind. He stayed like that, and over time the rest of her face was built around them: her small, pointed nose and the faint scattering of freckles across the bridge, the sharp curve of her eyebrows, the faint pinkness in her cheeks, her full lips, and the inch long scar that ran along the corner of her jawbone up near her right ear. He never had a chance to ask about that scar. He wondered where she had gotten it.

Sadly, the image had started to fade with time, and he could no longer pinpoint the finer details. He only ever recalled that those features were what she had, but he couldn't envision it as well as he used to.

He gritted his teeth. He felt angry with himself. He knew almost nothing about this girl, despite what he tried to believe. He didn't ask. And now, he never would know.

There was the sound of wagon wheels creaking, and Liam whirled around to see two horses appear over the slope of the hill, their heads bobbing up and down as they plodded along. Soon after, a group of heavily armed guards became visible, and over it all Liam could see what looked like a giant cage. Growling dogs tagged at the cage's wheels, keeping a close eye on whatever was inside.

Frowning slightly, Liam approached the guards. 'What do you have?'

'You wouldn't believe us if we told you, Highness,' one of the younger ones replied, grinning. Liam winced. He hated that term even more, now. It didn't sound right if it came out of another's mouth. The way _she_ said it, in a mocking tone, he liked it better. Well, it wasn't quite mocking. There was also some sort of rueful humour behind it.

Taking in a breath and making a "go on" gesture with his hand, Liam pressed on. 'Well?'

'We got one of _them!_' Liam's stomach dropped like a stone.

'One of – one of . . . the worgen?'

'See for yourself if you don't believe me, Highness.'

Liam walked around to the side of the cage, which was covered by a canvas tarp. Gingerly reaching out to lift a corner, he flicked it up rapidly in order to avoid potential claws.

'By the light . . .' he murmured. Curled up in a corner of the cage and letting out a low growl, was indeed one of the beasts. It had black and grey matted fur, darkened even further with dried blood. The eyes – they were narrowed to almost slits with an almost she-wolf appearance, and he couldn't see the orbs, but he knew what colour they would be. It could be a female, for all he knew. The beast's build seemed to suggest that was the case. The eyes were most likely a dark brown, black perhaps, with barely visible pupils. The beast's muzzle was also stained with blood, which was bound to be from its most recent meal.

He studied its paws. The claws were retracted, however the shape of the pads were almost human-like, and quite easily looked as though they had changed from hands like his own.

'The bugger's sedated, Your Majesty,' another guard said. 'Best to keep your distance, but it probably won't hurt you.'

Liam waved him off impatiently. 'I'll be fine. Where are you taking it?'

'The king, Highness. We reckon that he decides what to do with it.'

Liam nodded absently, still watching the animal. 'I'll come with you.'

* * *

'Father!'

Bursting into the small house that the Greymanes currently occupied, Liam looked around. Genn, who was talking with Liam's mother, looked up.

'The guards! They've caught –'

'No yelling in the house, dear,' Mia scolded. Liam flushed slightly and lowered his tone. 'They've caught one of the beasts. A worgen.'

The king's eyebrows furrowed together, and he crossed the room to Liam, lifting his jacket from the wooden coatrack as he did so. 'What?'

'They want you to decide what to do with it.'

'Show me.'

Pushing the front door back open and stepping out onto the grass outside, Liam whirled around to look back towards the outskirts of the town, gesturing for his father to follow.

The cage had been deposited on the ground a small distance away from the population, the tarp still draped over it. Frowning just as Liam had, Genn walked over to it, where the guards stood.

'We've something to show you, Your Highness,' one of them said, moving over to lift the tarp. This time, it was pulled off entirely, completely revealing the beast.

Now that it was no longer in shadowed darkness, Liam was able to see it more clearly. Obviously still drugged, the beast's movements were sluggish and its head was bowed. The king approached it, studying it with interest. As he drew closer, the growling in the worgen's throat became more audible. It tensed, and right when it looked as though it were about to lash out, he turned away to the guards.

'Sedate it again,' he instructed. 'I want to get a proper look at it, out in the stocks. You can put it back afterwards.'

With a nod, the guard that had spoken before inserted a tranquilizer dart into his crossbow and took aim. After one swift motion, the worgen crumpled.

In the next few minutes the guards unlocked the cage and pulled the beast out onto the grass, before lifting it up between them and carrying it over to the nearby stocks. One of them dropped a leg to open them up, before the others fitted its head and paws into the appropriate slots. The contraption was then closed and locked into place. Even for a worgen, it was incredibly small. A runt, evidently.

Liam walked up to it, studying its face again. The eyelids were drooping, but they watched him with a tired hostility. But the colour . . .

His father also looked at the beast, walking around it and inspecting its structure. Liam was still trying to get a proper look at its eyes. Finally, he got so impatient that he actually touched it, carefully lifting up a lid. Just before the irises rolled up into its head he saw the colour. A strange combination of blue and green.

He frowned. Odd. _Very_ odd. The colour, it . . . it was rare. Maybe the beast was from elsewhere . . .

He drew his hand away from its eye and instead ran his fingers through its fur along the jawline. Up near the long, curved, and frayed ears, there was a thin, raised line. He moved his hand to the other side of its head and felt in the same place, but nothing was there.

He took a step back, feeling confused. It was only when his eyes wandered down to the beast's paws, that something clicked. He reached out and took the left one between his hands.

Oh no.

_No._

Though considerably scratched and splattered with dried blood, it was intact. Liam took a shaky breath, his heart beating violently in his chest. He swore softly and reached out to touch it, despite the dirtiness of it. He couldn't believe it. _No_.

Digging into the worgen's forearm was a thin, gold bracelet patterned with leaves.

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**Last edited: 16/1/16  
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	6. Losses

**Hey.**

**Just, FYI before we start, I wrote this chapter _before_ starting this story. I just went back through it now and edited tiny bits so it fitted. **

**tmd126: Um, yeah. I chose to relate Liam's psychoticness to him losing Kathryn rather than drinking. I just found it fitted better. Though keep in mind, he still _has_ been drinking, if that's what you mean. Grief does that to some people. And with the capturing bit, I just went off the WoWWiki, where it reckoned that a handful of weeks passed. I wanted to be different from that, so I changed it up to about nine or ten months and rolled with that. Erm, is "interesting" a good thing?**

**david davidson: I know that thinking of stuff to say in reviews can be a bit difficult, but thank you all the same. They still make me feel good. **

**REMEMBER: I wrote this chapter BEFORE.**

**Cheers!**

**~Ice.**

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_**6 – Losses**_

**Lorna**

Lorna paced across the wooden floor of the kitchen and pulled the whistling kettle off the stove. She tipped some of the water into her mug and walked back to her armchair, blowing on it to cool it. Sniffing at it, she wrinkled her nose. Tea had never been a favourite of hers, but currently it served rather well as a comfort drink.

Remaining silent, she sipped it and stared at the wall. As usual, the wood panelling was almost completely bare, save a mirror to her far left. She never had the heart to decorate it. A few mastiff puppies tackled each other rowdily at her feet. She looked down at them. Usually the sight would make her smile, and join in with their playing. But she hadn't smiled for months now, and this time was no different. She felt she wasn't capable of such a feat anymore.

Lorna set down her tea and wrung her hands in her lap, looking at the wall once more. Her eyes were drawn to the mirror. Letting out a small sigh as she rose, she crossed the room to look in it. Her black hair was limp and unkempt, and was hanging loose halfway down her torso. Her eyes were dull, and devoid of the life and laughter that they were usually filled with. Her lips were split and chapped.

A rustling from outside made her whirl around on her heels and grab her blunderbuss from the kitchen table next to her.

Footsteps sounded up the front garden path. She brought the gun up near her face and placed her finger on the trigger. She hadn't used this for so long. Her hands trembled.

Someone knocked on the front door. 'Are you in there, Miss Crowley?'

Lorna relaxed, her blunderbuss falling limply to her side with relief. 'Ah, yes. Just a moment, Krennan.'

She placed the blunderbuss back on the table, and crossed the room to open the door. Krennan Aranas stood in the doorway, wrapped up in his blue cloak.

'Come in,' she said, her voice cracking slightly from lack of use. Krennan nodded, and crossed the threshold.

'How have you been of late, Miss Crowley?'

'The same as usual.'

Since Darius' death, Lorna had lived the life of a hermit. She never permitted anyone to see her, save Krennan, and Liam on the odd occasion. The alchemist had long since earned her trust, and made a point of frequently checking on her once every couple of days. Even though she had grown used to expecting him, his arrival always managed to startle her and several times she had almost shot him, despite not using a gun for so long.

Krennan nodded, and seated himself down in the other armchair. Lorna went to do the same, pausing only to scratch a mastiff behind the ears. She almost picked up her tea again, but the very sight of it made her stomach turn slightly, so she left it.

'There have been more worgen attacks,' Krennan said. Lorna nodded, her mouth tightening. 'However they are not as severe as they were in Gilneas.'

Lorna closed her eyes, pain evident in her chest. She very thought of the worgen made her so bloody _furious_, and made the pain of losing her father so much worse.

_Lorna met up with Liam and Genn in Duskhaven. She had been making her way through the evacuated survivors, desperately trying to find her father._

'_Liam!' she cried. He turned, and his expression became pained when he saw her. _

'_Lorna,' he said slowly. He looked at his father, as though not sure how to say something._

'_Darius -,' Genn started, but Liam interrupted him. _

'_Your father, he stayed to fend off the worgen at the cathedral. Kathryn and Tobias were with him. They -,' his voice shook, filled with pain. 'They – I don't think they made it.'_

_Lorna's stomach dropped like a stone. Kathryn. Tobias. Darius. _

_She started shaking, attempting to keep back the tears. No. _No._ She pulled out her gun and pointed it at Genn. _

'_This was just your idea of revenge after the Northgate Rebellion, isn't it?' she cried. 'Leaving him to die? Damn you! _Damn you!'

'_Lorna, no!' Liam held her back, and wrapped both of his arms securely around her, taking the blunderbuss. _

'_Let me go die too!' she yelled. 'Let me –' She couldn't hold it back any longer. All of the fight went out of her, and the tears started flowing freely down her face as she continued shouting profanities at the king. Liam rubbed her back, shushing her and attempting to calm her down. She turned and sobbed into his chest. _

_Lorna didn't pay attention to much that followed. She went back to her home in the Crowley Orchard, and had stayed there in an attempt to continue her life, breeding mastiffs and mountain horses. She had seen Liam, but not the king, or even Gwen Armstead since. _

She looked up at Krennan. 'Did you catch any of the worgen?' she asked.

Krennan looked at her. 'Yes. We have one.'

Lorna gestured for him to elaborate.

'The Prince is having me make a potion to help treat them. He believes that it may be someone . . . important. The King also has the same ideas.'

'Who is it?'

Krennan frowned slightly, looking slightly to her left. 'I'd best not say. Not until we are certain. Then I'll be sure to tell you.'

Lorna bit her lip, and an eyebrow travelled up her head as a thought occurred to her. 'And Lord Godfrey isn't attempting to have something done about the beast?'

'Believe me, he has tried,' Krennan said gravely. 'He is insisting to put a bullet through its head. But the king is so determined that we attempt to treat it, he will not allow him to do so.'

Lorna nodded, focusing on a spot on the floor. 'Do you think there will be any problems with the potion treating it?'

Krennan's brow furrowed and he didn't answer for a while, deep in thought. 'This worgen has been roaming the wild for a few months now. The antidote that I am making has only been known to treat recent infections. I am not sure if it will work.'

A dog barked outside, and both of them jumped in surprise. Krennan stood up, as though getting a sudden reality-check.

'I need to go,' he said. 'I have a job that I need to finish.'

Lorna nodded.

'I'll be back in a few days,' he said.

And with that, he gave her a brief wave, and left. Lorna's head dropped to her chest, and she let out a small sigh. She was tired. Incredibly tired. She stood up and went into her bedroom to grab her quilt. She came back to her armchair and wrapped it around herself, closing her eyes.

_A little girl about four years old was attempting to lift up a blunderbuss that was just about as big as her. She had both of her small arms wrapped around the barrel end, and was leaning backwards, trying to get the front half of the gun into the air. A laughing man with long reddish-brown hair grabbed the other end of the gun, and placed the whole thing into the girl's arms. She giggled, and tried to turn it around so she was holding it the right way. The man laughed again and picked it up, coming around behind the girl. He squatted so that his face was next to hers, and helped her hold the gun correctly. He kept his own hands on the weapon, holding it up. Then, giggling as her father whispered instructions in her ear, the girl brought her chubby right hand to the trigger, looking at a far off target near a grove of trees. With a determined expression, she tried to pull the trigger. Her face fell when she realised that she wasn't strong enough to pull it all the way in. Her eyes started to fill with tears. _

_With a small smile, her father whispered another instruction, tapping the trigger and each of her hands. The girl started to grin again, and brought up both of her hands to tug on it. _

_The gun went off with an almighty bang, and the girl screamed at the noise, jumping backwards. The bullet ploughed through the middle of a tree a long way left of the target, just missing a bird. _

_The girl's eyes widened, and she started squealing and laughing, jumping up and down and hugging her father. He laughed, and hugged her back, rubbing the top of her head energetically with his knuckles. The girl squealed again, and ran inside of the house behind her, her father chasing her._

_The girl was older now, about thirteen, and riding a chestnut coloured mountain horse down a slope. The horse nickered and halted every few steps. A ground-shaking roar echoed behind her. The girl's eyes widened, and she hastened the horse down the slope. Loud thumps came from the top of the mountain, causing the trees to shake violently. The horse skidded down to the bottom of the mountain, and the girl rode it at a full-speed canter down to the orchard house. _

_When she got there, she leapt off the horse and ran inside, grabbing her blunderbuss from the kitchen table._

'_Father!' she called, her eyes fixed on the mountain through the window. There was no reply._

'Father!_' she yelled again, her voice becoming slightly hysterical. When there was no response once more, the girl threw open the front door and ran into the orchard, looking around desperately._

'_What's wrong?' The girl's father came running out of the forest, a heavy gun strapped to his back. Letting out a relieved cry, the girl ran forward and wrapped her arms around him, hugging him tightly. 'The Ettin. I thought it was coming down from the mountains.'_

_He frowned, and looked up at the mountains himself. 'I can't see him. I don't think we should worry until we actually see him.' He plucked a rose from a nearby bush and put it in his daughter's hair, giving her a reassuring rub on her back. 'It'll be alright.'_

_The girl nodded, evidently calming down. 'Okay.'_

_The girl had grown again, to about eighteen. She was a woman now. She stood with her father outside of a tremendous stone wall. A mass of people were gathered behind them, with a great number of weapons and artillery. The woman turned to her father._

'_Why won't you let me fight?' she hissed. He frowned._

'_I don't want you to get caught up in all of this,' he replied, looking at her with a stern gaze. _

'_But I can fire a weapon! I know what I am doing!' the woman yelled. 'This is _our_ land and _our_ people being separated by this wall! I have as much right to go into this battle as you do!'_

'_I don't want you to get hurt!' he snapped back. 'You're all that I have!'_

'_And _you're_ all that _I_ have!' she yelled. _

'_No,' her father said. 'You are not coming. Go back to the orchard.'_

'_But –'_

'Now!_' he said, his voice cracking like a whip. The woman glared, and walked into the crowd, pushing her way through. Once she was out of her father's sight, she ducked into a cluster of bushes. _

_The advancement started. The sound of yelling, clanging and explosions was overpowering. The woman ran out of the bushes and into the crowd, her blunderbuss in her hands. Whenever she saw someone from the opposing army, she fired at them. _

_This went on for several hours, until the point where the rebels were losing. Those that had survived so far were being rounded up and arrested. The woman spotted her father through the crowd just as he took a blade to the eye. He roared in pain, and brought both hands up to the damage._

'_Father!' She ran to him. He looked up._

'_What are you doing here?' he groaned._

'_Shut up,' the woman said. She kneeled next to him and tried to find a way to stem the blood flow. She ripped a strip off her dress and balled it up, holding it to his eye. _

'_Darius Crowley,' a voice said, sounding surprised. The woman's father looked up to see a man dressed in battle armour sitting on a horse, looking pained. _

'_Genn,' Darius spat out._

_The woman stood up. 'Get away!' she yelled._

'_Lorna, no,' Darius said. He stood up himself, and glared at the king with his only working eye. _

'_Why would you do this –' the king started._

'_Don't give me that bullshit, Graymane!' Darius yelled. 'You know _exactly_ why!' _

_Genn closed his eyes and bowed his head. The noise from the battle was still incredibly loud. Two soldiers came seemingly out of nowhere and grabbed Darius by the arms, hauling him to his feet. Lorna screamed and clung onto her father, shouting profanities at the soldiers. Another soldier grabbed her from behind and pulled her from him, kicking and screaming. The men took Darius away, and Lorna attempted to break free from the soldier. After a long time, he finally let her go, and she ran, scooping up her blunderbuss and desperately looking for any sign of her father. There was none. Lorna spent all night searching, before concluding that he had been arrested, and returning to the orchard in subdued silence._

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**Last edited:16/1/16  
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	7. Last Chance At Humanity

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**I really have nothing to say. So, just remember to review.**

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**~Ice.**

* * *

_**7 – Last Chance At Humanity**_

A man with a monocle approached the cage and gave a rueful smile. The female worgen gave a low growl and watched him with hostile eyes. Ignoring this, he stroked the top of his pistol with his thumb.

'Look at what you've become,' he murmured. 'Those cursed beasts . . . They've left you nothing more than just another wretched mongrel.'

An involuntary flashback overcame the worgen. The tormented face of a male was all that it saw, until the other leapt forwards and sunk his teeth deep into her arm.

'Do you even remember what you did to your friends?' the man taunted. Another memory surfaced – viciously slashing at a cowering man, and bounding over him when he crumpled to the outside world; into the woods.

'Your kind . . . hunting the wilds, unchecked . . .' He paused. 'Until we found you.'

The man took his hat off and came down on one knee, studying the worgen with keen eyes. The growling in the back of her throat intensified.

'They've kept you alive because they still believe you can be saved,' he said softly, looking at her in the eyes. 'To which I must ask . . . Is there even a _shred_ of humanity left within you?'

She halted in her growling, drawing her head back away from the bars. Something deep inside her head – a second conscience perhaps – was trying to break free. _It_ fully understood what this man was saying.

The man replaced his hat and stood up, turning away to face the wooden contraption she had been put into earlier. She remembered it, despite the drowsiness.

'Perhaps . . . we will find out, soon enough . . .'

* * *

**Liam**

Throwing the now-empty bottle of alcohol down by his feet and completely ignoring the shattering sound that followed, Liam turned away from the mirror. He already knew he was a complete wreck. It wasn't like seeing his appearance really reinforced that.

The same concept had dominated his thoughts for the past week, ever since the guards had brought in the worgen – brought in Kathryn. For some reason, the idea of her being dead was less painful to him. But a worgen? Even worse. She had been bitten at some point; maybe in the cathedral, maybe earlier, he didn't know. She was as good as gone, because now she was a mindless beast who didn't know or care who he was. Or who anyone was, really.

And it was that fact that hurt the most.

* * *

**Genn**

Genn, Lord Godfrey, and Krennan Aranas stood around the beast that was locked in the stocks. A corked vial of a pale blue potion was held tightly in Krennan's hand.

'I'm not giving up on you, Kathryn,' he said. 'I don't have a cure for the Curse yet . . . but there are treatments. You'll have control again.'

'Give it up, Krennan,' Godfrey said flatly. 'It's time to put this one down. It's protocol.'

Genn's mouth tightened, and he turned to Godfrey, a heavy frown etching its way onto his face. 'Tell me, Godfrey. Those that stayed in the city so that we could live. Were they following protocol?'

He had no response for that.

'I don't think so. Now, hand me that potion, Krennan . . . and double the dosage.'

Krennan turned around to a large pot that had been removed from a fire not too long ago. He ladled out another vial and turned back to Genn, handing both to him. Genn clasped them both in his hands and walked over to Kathryn, who was fully conscious and growling ominously. Despite the danger, he leaned in close.

'I need you to pull through, Kathryn,' he said in a low voice. 'This dosage is strong enough to kill a horse. But I know you. I know what you're made of. You will be fine.'

Kathryn didn't stop growling. Instead, the noise rose in volume, and her lips drew back to reveal razor-sharp fangs.

'Trust me. I know what you're going through.'

That seemed to do it. Her eyes cleared slightly and she stopped snarling. The blue-green irises darted down to the vials in his hand. They stayed there. As Genn lifted them up, her eyes followed.

'Now drink up,' he murmured. He put a hand gently on her muzzle, but closed his fingers around it to prevent any danger. Krennan came up beside him and helped him prise it open carefully. 'And close your eyes . . .'

* * *

**Kathryn**

Oh, Light, the pain.

Her head felt as though it were at war with itself. It was almost like there were two sides of her, each fighting to take dominant control. Maybe she was going mad. Or maybe this was a side effect of being dead. Though, to be honest she expected death to be a little easier to go through.

Then again, maybe she was in her own personal hell. Sometimes she knew she definitely deserved it.

She started to wonder what had happened. All she knew about were the last moments of her life, and the confusion that had been brought with it. It was an odd way to go, writhing about on the floor in the middle of a battle for no apparent reason. Maybe one of the beasts had snapped her neck, ending her misery for her. Or perhaps her body was now a brutally savaged wreck, her blood smeared on the floor of the cathedral, and her innards . . . nope, that thought was just making her sick. The most positive possibility she had was that she was probably been ingested by one (or many) of the beasts a long time ago.

She started to wonder what had happened to Liam. Had he gotten out alive? Did he know what had become of her? Did he care at all?

The most disturbing thought was that she _wanted_ to know where he was right now. What he was thinking. What he was doing. Normally she didn't give a damn about such things, but he wasn't _normal_, was he? He was a non-pompous, caring, genuinely _nice_ guy. Sometimes, anyway. And even though this was stupid, especially by her standards, Kathryn found it endearing.

Um, _yeah_.

At the present moment, her conscience felt as though it were floating aimlessly through blackness. She knew that if she tried to open her potentially-existing eyes, her head (yet again, if it existed) would hurt like a bugger. She wondered what hell looked like.

That was when faint voices began to push themselves underneath the fabric of her mind. What were they? Demons?

'. . . been days . . . up by now . . .'

'. . . time . . . she needs . . . beast . . .'

Unconsciously, Kathryn felt herself pulling towards those voices. Maybe they knew a way out of this endlessness.

As the voices became clearer, she was able to hear more of what they were saying.

'Does the prince know?'

'Not a chance. No point in getting his hopes . . .'

They faded out suddenly and Kathryn started to panic. _No_.

She strained twice as hard, trying to pull through. Her head felt as though it were going to collapse on her at any moment. Despite the pain, she kept up with it. She _needed_ to.

Nothing seemed to happen, except that the dull pounding she had ignored before became increasingly louder. She started to lose hope. She was doomed to this forever –

With a strangled gasp she broke the surface.

* * *

'Milord! It's awake!'

Footsteps that had been fading out as though their owner was walking in the opposite direction suddenly halted. They then seemed to turn around and start coming back.

Drawing heavy breaths, Kathryn tried to open her eyes. She was _alive_. There was something around her neck, and her wrists were being kept aloft.

_Open your eyes,_ she thought desperately to herself. _Come on. Open them. _

She gave a small cough and forced her eyelids apart. Instantly, she was greeted by blinding sunlight. With a cry of pain, she closed them again.

She then paused to register the noise she had just made. It sounded like . . . a whimper. Not as in a human whimper . . . as in the sound a dog made when it was in pain. Kathryn knew that sound; she had spent enough time with Lorna and her mastiffs to know it by heart.

'Does it still seem like a beast to you?' Kathryn recognised this voice. Godfrey.

'I don't know, Milord.' This one was unfamiliar.

A hand grabbed her roughly by the chin and forced her head up. 'Is a woman named Kathryn Weiss in there, you mongrel?'

'Yes,' she muttered weakly. Her voice was really low compared to usual. 'I'm fine.'

Her head was dropped abruptly and it smacked into what felt like wood.

'So that damned potion did not kill you?' Godfrey sounded surprised, shocked even. 'Well, I suppose that means the human inside of you is in control then.'

Human _inside? _What?

'Let her out,' Godfrey muttered to the unnamed person. There was the sound of clinking keys, and the top half of her restraint was lifted from the back of her neck. Standing up shakily, she slowly raised her head to take in her surroundings.

Stocks. She was in _stocks._ This little tidbit of information didn't make understanding any easier. She looked up at Lord Godfrey, who was watching her with a partially amused expression. An armoured guard stood beside him. 'I guess I won't be shooting you after all. At least not yet.'

'_Shooting me?_' Her voice was still ridiculously low, and rough from a lack of use. It was still feminine, sure, and it was hers, but it was . . . deeper, she guessed.

'You haven't realised yet?' Godfrey inquired with a raised eyebrow. 'Take a look at yourself.'

Dreading the worst, she lifted her hand.

On _no_.

Damn it, no.

Hand was the wrong word. _Paw_ _with fingers _was more accurate. She scanned down her body. She was still wearing the clothes she had been wearing from her last memories of being conscious, however they were viciously shredded and bloodstained. The jacket had disappeared entirely. She was completely covered in black and silver fur. Her feet were just like a dog's, both in shape and form.

'Worgen,' she breathed. 'Oh no. No, no, no, no, _no_.'

'You had better believe it, girl,' Godfrey said, a small sneer tugging on his features. 'Because it's true.'

* * *

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**Last edited: 16/1/16  
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	8. Among Humans Again

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**Sorry if there was a wait, this took a while. Anyway, as usual, I have nothing to say. So, make sure you review.**

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* * *

**_8 – Among Humans Again_**

**Kathryn**

She just wanted to sit down and scream, but there was no way she was going to do that in front of Godfrey. She wasn't going to give him the satisfaction of seeing a "beast" lose control in a completely different way to usual. She believed he assumed that worgen didn't have hearts. But she did, didn't she?

'Well, then,' Godfrey said. 'Go see Krennan Aranas and give him the good news. And you can feel better knowing that nobody will shoot you. The citizens were told that if you were walking around, you were most likely human in regards to your state of mind.'

The word bounced around in Kathryn's head. _Humanhumanhumanhumanhuman . . ._

It was tormenting her.

'Where is he?' she asked slowly, trying not to show that she was bordering on the edge of uncontrollable anger and confusion. 'Krennan, I mean.'

'Do you really need an escort, girl?' he asked gruffly. Without another word, he pointed out the steel gate behind him and at the first house. 'Because I have enough business to attend to without minding mutts such as yourself.'

Hot rage started to boil in Kathryn's chest. She might not be human anymore, her life may be permanently messed up, but she still bloody _cared_. It took all of her self-control not to attack him there and then.

'Just remember, Kathryn . . .' Godfrey said silkily. 'I've got my eye on you. You so much as try anything funny and you'll get a bullet between the eyes.'

A low, involuntary growl began building in her throat.

'Good dog,' he sneered, before turning and walking away.

She was _not_ a dog. She was . . . she was . . .

She paused in her train of thought. What _was_ she? Physically, she was a worgen. But mentally . . . mentally, she could be either. She had the heightened senses of the beast, but she had retained her human memories and emotions.

Beast, monster . . . _dog_ . . . her life was talking a turn for the worse. And the strangest part was that she felt like she wasn't going completely insane . . . _yet_.

* * *

The looks she got were bad enough. As Godfrey had said, both the evacuated survivors and the citizens of Duskhaven knew that she was stable, but that didn't change that she was no longer human. That didn't change all of the terrified, and sometimes scornful faces she saw around her.

With a small sigh, she rested a furry, clawed hand on the wooden door of the first building and pushed it open.

Krennan and Gwen were the first people that she laid eyes on, and as they saw her, they both rose from their seats.

'It worked!' Krennan exclaimed incredulously. 'By the Light, it worked!'

'Is that . . . _you,_ Kathryn?' Gwen breathed.

'I think so,' she muttered. 'Though as far as everyone else is concerned, I'm a feral animal. A dog, even.'

Gwen rushed forward, enveloping her in a hug. 'I'm so sorry, Kathryn. I shouldn't have let you go to that cathedral. This never would have happened otherwise.'

'I wasn't bitten at the cathedral,' Kathryn said, suddenly realising that as a worgen, she now had a snout. She went cross-eyed trying to inspect it. 'I was getting ammunition for Darius . . .' she trailed off, a horrible idea coming to her. 'He didn't make it, did he?'

Gwen shook her head, breaking off from her and taking a step back, looking her in the eyes. 'None of them did.'

There was a sinking feeling in her chest. 'Lorna?'

'She refuses to see any of us. It's been months, now.'

'I need to go to her.'

'Do exercise caution,' Krennan warned. 'Don't expect anyone to invite you to their homes just yet. But at least they won't shoot you outright.'

Kathryn felt herself frown. 'But she's Lorna. She's my friend.'

'And to her belief, both you and her father were slain by worgen.'

It all came together in Kathryn's mind, and she deflated slightly. 'Oh. Yeah. Right. _I'm_ a worgen.'

'Ah, yes,' he said. 'The effects of the Curse cannot ever be fully cured as far as we know. With treatment, however, your mind will remain yours . . . and not that of a wild animal.'

'I gathered that much,' Kathryn muttered. There was the sound of an opening door, and she looked up. Another worgen walked in, also a female. She was dressed in a floor-length, cotton dress. When she saw Kathryn, the darkened lines of fur that were evidently eyebrows raised.

'We are fortunate that the treatment worked on you,' Krennan continued. 'Normally, I can only treat recent infections, such as Mary here.' He gestured to the worgen. 'We'll need to continue your medication if we're to have you reverse the Curse. I will need mandrake essence to brew another batch of my serum for you. You will find a crate stashed beneath a shed southwest of town.'

'Let me get you a change of clothes before you go,' Gwen insisted, taking her by the wrist.

'No, Gwen, I'm fine,' Kathryn insisted. Gwen shook her head. 'You still look like one that's still on the rampage. Now, come on.'

'Do I even _need_ \- ?'

'_Modesty_, Kathryn.'

And so, Kathryn grudgingly let herself be pulled into the next room to change.

* * *

At least Gwen still took her escapading into consideration. Kathryn ended up walking out of the house in calf-length leather pants and a sleeveless, black top. Comfortable enough, and as she discovered, she was able to drop onto all fours and run in it. Though running like this was new to her, her body was obviously used to it. As far as she knew, she had spent about ten months as a feral beast. That little bit of information hadn't comforted her in the slightest.

The small number of streets in Duskhaven were paved with cobblestones, and over the tops of the houses Kathryn could see an occasional windmill.

As it had been when she first went to the alchemist's house, she was still being watched warily, as though she would suddenly revert to her feral self and kill everyone in sight. Kathryn snorted in spite of herself. Psh. As _if_ she would let that happen again. She liked to stay in her own state of mind, thank you very much. And she didn't like it that she was going to be like this for the rest of her Light-forsaken life. Yes, she was finally starting to see that. And she didn't like that at all. She wasn't sure her mind was coping very well.

But, unless she got this essence for Krennan, she would turn back into the beast she was before. And she didn't want to lose herself into something like that again. She would rather lose her sanity than her control.

* * *

She found the shed easy enough, but what she found she didn't like so much. The crate containing her objective had been dragged outside and smashed, and the vials inside of it appeared to have been broken. Kathryn picked up a shard of shattered glass and closed her hand around it, clenching tightly and drawing blood. No. Bloody hell, _no_.

What was she going to do now? How long did she have left?

Her eyes wandered up the path, and her heart jumped in surprise when they settled on a body sprawled on the ground. She approached it slowly, and rolled it over. A long knife with a skull ornament was sticking out of the militiaman's ribs.

She looked out over the rise the town was on, and at the see. What was that? She squinted, trying to discern the two shapes. They seemed to be moving; getting closer.

She took a step forward until she was right on the edge of the cliff.

Ships. Two huge ships, just arriving on the shore.

She took a step back. Gilneas was being invaded.

Kathryn unstuck the blade and clenched it in her hand, before turning around. Her ears pricked. She could hear something that sounded like the quiet, rattling of bones.

Her eyes searched the empty scenery around her. She couldn't see anything, but she could hear. And smell . . . rotting flesh.

She whirled around at the right moment, just as the figure of a skeletal female pounced on her, with a similar dagger to the one Kathryn had just picked up.

'Gilneas will soon belong to the Forsaken,' she hissed, digging her bony fingers into the scruff of Kathryn's neck. She yelped and flung the corpse around, and she hit the ground with a cracking sound as bones snapped under the pressure. The woman growled and leapt at her again, the dagger aimed at Kathryn's heart. She spun sideways and knocked her into the cobblestones, before dropping onto all fours and diving onto her, catching the assassin's fleshless neck between her jaws.

With a low growl, she put on pressure, and the woman's spine snapped cleanly against her teeth. The body went limp, and, still carrying the head in her mouth, Kathryn dropped it over the edge of the cliff.

That was when it set in.

She just _did _that?

Her tongue had an awful taste on it, and she let it loll out, determined to get rid of it. Looking around, she spotted a brimming barrel of water, and went to clean out the taste of rotten flesh.

When she resurfaced, she took a deep, but shaky, breath. Those were feral instincts. She knew it. The problem was that she was in control. The whole time.

No, she _didn't_ go around it like she usually would have. Normally, she would have wrenched the head clean off the assassin's neck with her hare hands, rather than using her . . . fangs. Damn it, she had _fangs_.

Too much build-up, _too much build-up_ . . .

She was going to go mad, wasn't she?

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**Last edited: 16/1/16  
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	9. Invasion

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**I actually thought I lost this chapter before. Then I open up a new Word document to rewrite it, then I do a bit, go to save it, and miraculously, my original chapter is still there.**

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_**9 – Invasion**_

**Kathryn**

'Undead!' Gwen's face went pale. 'We need to mount a defense.'

She sat down, chewing her lip and thinking. 'The reefs have always protected us from a coastal attack. The earthquakes must've opened a passage for the ships.' She looked up at Kathryn. 'Slow down the attackers while I get the militia ready. Liam's out there; speak to him and see how you can be of use.' She was already back on her feet and halfway out the door before she turned again. 'Oh . . . and make sure he doesn't get himself killed. I'm afraid he might be a little reckless in his current state.' With that, she stepped out into the street.

Kathryn's head was spinning. Liam . . . reckless . . . How come she felt that those two words didn't usually fit together?

Shaking her head incredulously and running outside, Kathryn made a beeline for the noise she was already starting to hear. Damn it, those Undead moved fast. They were attacking from the south of Duskhaven, coming in about packs of ten. Kathryn could already see them.

Guards were already fighting them off, though her eyes instead scanned over the mass, looking for Liam.

In the end, he wasn't too hard to see. Shirtless and holding a bottle in one hand, he was drunkenly swinging a sword with the other, violently hacking off the heads of skeletons. When he swung so hard that he nearly toppled over, one of the guards, looking thoroughly irritated at his behaviour, had to steady him.

Kathryn swore under her breath. He wasn't _drinking_, was he?

Dropping onto all fours, she bounded towards him, leaping up and flattening a skeleton that was making to attack him from behind. With a ferocious growl, she ripped its head from its neck – again. At the present moment, violence was quite acceptable.

She turned to Liam, whose eye was twitching, and had raised his sword so the point touched her neck. His arm shook.

'Oh, stop it,' Kathryn said irritably. 'You're a right bloody _sulker_, you know that?'

Liam blinked, looking confused. His mind seemed to push its way out of its disorientated state. 'Kat – Kath -?'

'Yes, yes, we can have mind-blowing realisations later. Drop the bottle.'

He didn't do anything.

'_Drop it_.'

Liam dropped the bottle.

'Good. Now repeat after me.' Kathryn was completely ignoring the battle that was going on around them, but she knew that the Forsaken's numbers were thinning down considerably. For the present moment. 'I am a _prince_.'

'I am a prince,' Liam muttered.

'Not a drunken arse.'

'Not a drunken arse . . .'

'Because Kathryn is not worth throwing a tantrum about.'

'Because Kathryn – hey!'

She crossed her arms. 'It's true.'

Liam regarded her for a moment. 'So you _are_ alive.'

'As far as I'm aware.'

The smallest of smiles tugged at the corners of his lips. 'I thought I was having dreams about the old days when I heard your voice . . .'

She frowned. 'That's really stupid, you know.'

Ignoring this, he reached out and touched her face, running his fingers over the fur on her cheek. 'So you're not mindless anymore? What happened? Last time I saw you, you were in the stocks.'

She sighed. 'Explanations later, okay? If you hadn't noticed -,' she gestured wildly around them. '-we're under attack!'

He shook his head. 'Right. Well, look here, Kathryn. The big fat ones – abominations, they're called – they don't go down easy. So don't tackle them on your own.' He gestured down the slight slope, and Kathryn grimaced at the sight of what she saw. The abominations were ambling about and incredibly huge, and they . . . they looked like they were sewn together from different corpses. Kathryn could have sworn there was a hand holding a meat cleaver sticking out of one's stomach.

'But,' Liam said, snapping her attention back to him. There was a manic glint in his eye, and Kathryn started to wonder just how much alcohol he had consumed. He wasn't incoherent yet, so that was a good thing. 'I have an idea just so crazy it might work. Or it might get you killed, if we're not careful, I suppose.'

* * *

**Liam**

Liam made a mental note that next time Kathryn was mad at him, he wouldn't let her near gunpowder. Those abominations really didn't stand a chance. She would pick up a keg of gunpowder from underneath a windmill, light it, then toss it at one of them. It always landed squarely on its head, and it only had time to mumble an unintelligible comment of confusion before it was blown to bits. The end result was not pretty.

He was still slightly in shock. Kathryn was a worgen, but she wasn't wild, like she was. She wasn't a goner, after all. But how . . . ?

His train of thought halted, and the idea occurred to him as he ran his blade through the frame of a skeleton running at him.

Krennan.

And _no one_ told him?

Shaking his head disbelievingly and coming close to tottering off sideways, Liam gripped onto a fencepost to steady himself.

He looked up again just as Kathryn hurled another barrel. Even being . . . who she was, she was still just as irritable, temperamental and blunt as ever. Liam was glad that hadn't changed.

He snatched a blunderbuss up from outside the nearest shed and pointed at one of the goliaths, aiming right for an eye. He figured that if he tried to shoot a heart, it would most likely have been shoved back in a different place. He fired multiple times and the abomination roared. The eye exploded, and a few bullets seemed to penetrate its brain. It swayed slightly before falling over completely.

An explosion made by the gunpowder shook the ground slightly and as far as Liam knew, that was the last abomination gone. Kathryn scanned the area around them, before turning back to Liam, who had to whirl around and smack another of the Forsaken to the ground. He had discovered that chopping off their heads was the most effective way to deal with them, and did exactly that.

'Not too shabby for a drunkard,' Kathryn muttered in his ear, coming up behind him. Even from her tone he could tell she was smirking.

'I'm going to have to work hard at not shooting you, but we make a great team,' he commented. She snorted in derision.

'And what did _you_ do, huh?'

'Survived.'

'Fair enough.'

He gave a small laugh in spite of himself. 'It's good to have you back.' He ruffled her affectionately on the head (she was still smaller than him) and stepped back hastily when a low growl erupted in the back of her throat. 'Still sensitive about the dog thing, I'm guessing?'

She gave him a flat stare.

Liam raised both of his hands in defence. 'Okay, okay!'

He looked around at battle still going on. 'We can make it from here. These are only a small part of the Forsaken's forces. If we don't move quickly we're going to have bigger problems on our hands.'

He paused in his thought, an idea coming to him. 'See what you can do to engage them at their landing location.' Kathryn gave a small nod, and turned. Just before running off, she spared him one more look. 'You get really distracted in the middle of fights, you know. Also . . . stay alive.'

He gave a mock salute, smiling slightly.

* * *

**Kathryn**

Gwen. Gwen would know what to do. Most likely she would have already done it, she was that good.

She was in the centre of town, giving orders and taking up various responsibilities.

'Gwen!' Kathryn yelled, running forward. She turned and beamed at her.

'Great news, Kathryn. I've sent the remaining militia to the shore to meet the Forsaken force head on.'

Kathryn gave a small nod. 'Good. That was actually what Liam was saying.'

Gwen raised an eyebrow. 'He's alright?'

'Slightly drunk, but alive. And strangely coherent.'

'He's a bit different, isn't he,' she commented with a small smile.

'And stupid.'

'That's biased.'

'It's true.'

'Fine, fine. But I have a job for you. Lord Godfrey is leading the attack near the landing area. See what you can do to help us keep the Forsaken back. I've been told Godfrey has commandeered the storm cellar in the Allen Farmstead, far to the west. Seek him there.'

'Godfrey?' Kathryn asked slowly.

'You'll be fine,' Gwen said flatly.

'He _hates_ me,' she hissed. 'He won't let me help! I know it!'

'Sometimes you'll be surprised, Kathryn,' she replied dryly. 'You really need to look past your own nose when it comes to these things.'

'Look past – _what?_'

'You're always judging people before they've even done something.'

'No I don't -'

'Godfrey.'

'Yeah, but –'

'Liam.'

That pulled her up short. When she finally regained her composure, she said stiffly, 'I don't even really mention him.'

'I know you do it in your head. Don't try to lie, Kathryn, You think about him a lot.'

'I don't -'

'_Kathryn_.'

Her mouth snapped shut.

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	10. Unleash The Beast

**Oops. Six days.**

**Well, erm . . . I sort of have an excuse. I was overcome with a sudden desire to play Warcraft 3 again. So, that's what I did. And so my writing was slowed down because of it.**

**Erm . . . heh . . .**

* * *

_**10 – Unleash The Beast**_

**Kathryn**

Taking the cobblestone path that led down to the farmsteads on the shore below Duskhaven, Kathryn started contemplating life at the present moment and pulled a face.

To matters of importance: Liam. It was obvious he hadn't been going positively psycho for a very long period of time – he wasn't that worse for wear. The mess he had been attempting to put himself in to was obviously induced by recent discoveries, and Kathryn had a nasty feeling it had something to do with him finding her as a worgen. She had only been, ahem . . . _retrieved_ about a week ago, as far as she knew. And, she wasn't having a sense of her own importance or anything, but she could tie the two together. Liam was just that sort of person, she guessed. He was a prince . . . and felt the need to sulk when things didn't go his way.

No, she was lying to herself.

He wasn't like that. Quite clearly.

But the fact that he had almost gotten full on _drunk_ because of her actually made her feel rather horrible. Thank the Light she had caught him when he was just bordering on tipsy. She was also relieved that he was rather sane when alcohol was in his systems. The worst he was doing was stumbling all over the place, though Kathryn wouldn't have wanted to see what would have happened had she not intervened when she did. Really, he ought to have been a _little_ more sensible. However, understandably, grieving sometimes did that to people.

_But,_ she thought, pausing half way down the slope, _was he grieving? _

Did he _actually _care? The thought of it made her laugh bitterly. Not a chance. To start off she had been an absolute _cow _to him (still was), and now . . . and now . . . and now she was, well, something very close to a wolf. But a lot more savage. And being completely honest here, _how_ could anyone like someone . . . someone like her? She wasn't fishing for compliments; she just knew it wasn't possible. She was already being discriminated against by the small population of Duskhaven. Against the rest of the world . . . she wouldn't stand a chance.

There were a small scattering of farmsteads on the expanse of land at the bottom of the slope, and in the fields healthy corn crops were thriving. A low, stone wall bordered some of the small streams the ocean had created and cobblestone paths led to each doorstep. Outside the cellar of one of the houses, two guards and their dogs were positioned, guns in hand. Upon seeing Kathryn approach, they raised their guns and their dogs growled. She resisted the temptation to growl back and instead focused on the men.

'I've been sent to help Godfrey,' she said flatly, not amused in the slightest by their hostility. Recognition seemed to cross both of their faces.

'You're _that_ one, aren't you?' one of them said, turning his back on her and unbolting the door. 'The prince was your beau when you were normal, wasn't he?'

Kathryn just about nearly tripped over in surprise. '_What? No!'_

'Certainly kicked up enough of a fuss about it when he thought you were dead,' he muttered.

Kathryn was seething. _Actually seething_. 'I'll have you know,' she started, her voice shaky from rage, 'I knew him for about two hours before – before _this!_' She gestured to the whole of herself, and the other watchman snorted. 'You're making me start to question why he did that, miss. Pardon me, but you don't seem like the happiest of sorts.'

Kathryn's eyes narrowed. 'You try and go through _half_ of what I have, then come back and tell me how _you're_ feeling.' She gave him a glare for good measure and made her way down the cellar steps.

The cellar wasn't exactly crowded – there were about ten people in there and it was large for a cellar. Some spare artillery had been stacked up. Godfrey, who had been speaking to a brown haired woman, looked up at her entrance. His eyes narrowed, but he crossed the room to her regardless.

'The Forsaken are here in full strength, Kathryn,' he said, his voice low. 'We barely have enough men to hold them back.' He took a slow inhale, looking her up and down. 'I'm not going to lie. I don't like the idea of having worgen among our ranks. Who knows how long til Krennan's concoction wears off and you're trying to chomp one of our heads off. Until that time, however, we can make ample use of your ferocity.'

Kathryn didn't say anything, but she was slightly confused. Was that a good or bad thing?

'I want you to go out in the battlefield and kill as many of those Forsaken as you can, in as brutal a way as you can. We're going to put the fear of the worgen in them, Kathryn.'

'So now I'm your weapon,' she said slowly.

'Do you want to help or not?'

Kathryn couldn't find an objection that she particularly felt like voicing.

'Now, I've a plan to kill two birds with one stone. You're the stone in this plan. Take out the machinists manning the catapults out there. After this, use the catapults to launch yourself aboard the Forsaken ships. If your aim isn't terrible, you should be able to land safely. Once on board, go below decks and take care of each ship's captain.'

The brown haired woman, who had been hovering anxiously behind Godfrey this entire time, stepped forward to talk to Kathryn, a look of pure fear in her eyes.

'The military will not allow me outside the cellar, but my children are still in my farm!' she whispered. Kathryn suddenly felt rather sick. Oh no. The woman grabbed her by her hands (paws?) and looked right at her as she spoke. 'Please, you must go find them.'

'Melinda, come now -' Godfrey started tiredly. She ignored him completely and continued talking.

'The Forsaken have no regard for innocent life - my kids are in great danger!' She seemed so desperate that Kathryn was inclined to help – that was, if the children were still alive.

'Their names are Cynthia, Ashley and James,' Melinda said. 'If you find them, bring them back here. I'll be forever in your debt.'

Kathryn stepped back. 'I – I'll keep an eye out.'

'Thank you.' The woman's eyes were shining with tears. Swallowing lightly, Kathryn turned on her heels and made her way back to the steps out of the cellar.

* * *

Looking at the shore outside, the chaos was almost indescribable. The ground was swarming with Forsaken and their numerous, skull adorned catapults, while at the docks, two ships were anchored and firing towards the distant silhouette of Duskhaven.

Taking immediate action, Kathryn raced through cornfields and shot out the other side of them, pouncing on her victims and viciously ripping them apart in front of their allies, before turning on them. Flesh was shredded, bones snapped and heads sent flying. And, Kathryn enjoyed _every second _of it. This animal instinct really knew what it was doing.

She stopped her attack for long enough to remember that she had children to look for.

In the cornfields by the nearest house, she could see a blonde head of hair hiding amongst the crop, running to the house. Kathryn dropped to all fours and ran towards it before one of the dead noticed. When she got there, a small boy who was about seven stumbled backwards in terror, watching Kathryn with fearful eyes.

'Your mother's in the basement next door. Get to her now!' Kathryn said, getting onto her back two feet and pointing with a clawed hand. James' breathing was harsh.

'Don't hurt me!' he cried. 'I was just looking for my sisters! I think Ashley's inside that house!'

Giving a small nod, Kathryn watched as he turned and ran, not moving until she was sure he had disappeared down the cellar. Then, turning and smashing open the door to the house, she ran upstairs, looking about wildly. A five year old redhead with two braids screamed and ran at the sight of her, bolting herself in the bedroom. Knowing it wouldn't be the best idea to smash her way in after her, Kathryn simply decided to be civil about it and not terrify the poor girl any further.

'Join the others inside the basement next door.' She jiggled the door a bit, and by the sound of it the lock slid out of place. 'Hurry!'

Ashley pushed the door open and her brown eyes pierced Kathryn's through the small gap.

'Are you one of the good worgen, miss?'

When Kathryn nodded, she pushed the door open and stepped out. 'Did you see Cynthia hiding in the sheds outside?'

She shook her head, and Ashley started running down the stairs. 'Please find her!' she called as she disappeared from sight.

Quickly glancing through the window, Kathryn spotted the shed Ashley must have been talking about, then watched the little girl run to the cellar. Turning and running down the stairs for herself, Kathryn jumped the last five steps and shot out the front door, making a beeline straight for the shed. When she was almost there she heard a piercing scream, and reacting instinctively, she burst into the tiny clearing of dirt and flattened the maliciously grinning corpse-man who was raising a lethal looking blade. Kathryn ripped off his head and tore apart his ribs with her claws, tossing his rotting remains deep into the field. The little, three year old blonde girl who had been hiding against the shed was still wailing. Kneeling down so she was level with the girl, Kathryn pointed and gave directions.

'It's not safe here. Go to the Allen's basement.'

Cynthia sniffled. 'You are scary! I just want my mummy!' She turned and ran barefooted through the fields, and standing back up again, Kathryn could just see her reach the house she was supposed to.

At least that didn't fail.

* * *

She swiped a machinist off the catapult he was firing and dealt with him appropriately before leaping up into the mechanism. Gritting her teeth, Kathryn turned it so it faced the nearest of the two ships, then had a fiddle with the angle before she deemed it about the right height. She had never worked one of these things before. She would most likely die doing this. Well, here goes nothing. She crawled out onto the arm of the catapult and reached out to smack the button from where she was.

The reaction was instant. The arm flew forward and so did Kathryn, soaring through the air as the ship became closer and closer. Now she just had to land this without injuring herself.

The mast was a good idea, she realised.

Reaching out before her, right as Kathryn hit the wood, her claws stuck into it. She then wrenched her hands out of it and slid down the wooden pole, landing on the deck. No one seemed to be around. Her best assumption was that the captains she was searching for were below deck somewhere. At least one of them had to be on this ship.

She ran into the cabin and took the stairs down under the deck, squinting slightly in the dim, eerily green light. Cobwebs adorned the walls and the beams that ran overhead, almost as though they were delicate chandeliers the spiders had created themselves. Or perhaps this was the sort of taste the Forsaken had in regards to décor. For all Kathryn knew, that could be the case.

Where the stairs led out, there was a long room with rows upon rows of cannons, all poking out of holes in the ship. There was a room astern of the boat, directly opposite her. Through the doorway, she could see movement.

Dropping down onto all fours and moving as quietly as she could, Kathryn crept in the shadows, keeping low and ensuring her breathing was light. She could barely hear herself, and she supposed that was why worgen were such good hunters. Being as lightweight as she was, the gentle creaking the ship occasionally made wasn't actually caused by her, but was due to it rocking slowly on the water.

Kathryn moved up against the doorframe, where she could hear the captain muttering irritably to himself.

She needed to time this right, preferably while he was looking away. There was the sound of boards creaking as weight rested upon them, and Kathryn started to count in her head.

_Three . . ._

_Two . . ._

_One . . ._

She sprung out of her hiding place and leapt upon the unsuspecting captain, knocking him to the ground. There was the sound of splintering bone as his arm hit the ground at a wrong angle. The additional weight Kathryn put on it didn't seem to help that. The captain growled in pain and stabbed violently at her with a knife. Kathryn dodged the blows and rolled sideways, making sure to tear a chunk of flesh off his ribcage while doing so. She spat out the filthy, rotten taste and dove back on him, closing her jaws around his neck and ripping his head clean off. The body fell limp, and trying to ignore the feeling of revulsion she got whenever doing this, Kathryn tossed the head away and got to her feet.

Right. One more to go, then.

* * *

For once, Godfrey actually seemed remotely pleased to see her.

'Well done, Kathryn,' he said, giving her a nod of approval. 'You might be a bloody beast, but you're our beast.'

Kathryn bristled, but otherwise chose to ignore this comment.

'Excellent work so far,' he continued. 'Our scouts have identified the leader of the Forsaken ground assault. One of Sylvanas' handpicked dark rangers is overseeing the battlefront from the Walden house near the shore.' He held out a dog whistle in his hand and Kathryn eyed it angrily, feeling like this was supposed to be some sick, mocking joke. 'Take this whistle and use it when you're close to her.'

She didn't move.

'I'll have my men let loose our attack mastiffs to take her down,' Godfrey explained, humour gleaming in his eyes. 'Be careful, Kathryn. You don't want to engage her alone.'

* * *

Upon exiting the cellar and looking around, Kathryn instantly saw her. Dressed in black, purple and gold robes, the pale skinned dark ranger sat atop an armoured skeletal war horse. She was just outside a house to the south, past where the low, stone wall curved slightly inwards.

Kathryn looked at the dog whistle in her hand then up at the ranger again, before stuffing the whistle in her pocket. Then, deciding that there was no better way to do this, she dropped onto all fours and charged at the ranger.

The other woman didn't look up from the attack she was surveying until the last minute, which was when Kathryn leapt up again and blew the whistle. It let off a shrill, piercing sound which hurt her ears. The ranger didn't seem to be able to hear this, and let out a cold laugh, drawing two blades. They seemed to glow red, just like her eyes.

That was when the dogs began streaming out of farmsteads, houses in Duskhaven – they seemed to come from everywhere. The ranger evidently hadn't been expecting this. She let out a cry of fury as she was tackled by viciously snapping dogs, which turned to pain when Kathryn joined the fray.

After a good minute of the violent bloodbath, Kathryn ended her misery by snapping her neck, and the groups of dogs dispersed, leaving Kathryn on her own beside the corpse of a dark ranger. Once again, she felt sickened with herself. She really couldn't control this violence, could she? The worst thing was that at the time she was always . . . _enjoying it._

This curse really was going to be the death of her.

* * *

'You did it, Kathryn,' Godfrey said. 'That should take the wind out of their sails.'

There was a huge rumbling noise and the ground seemed to shake violently. There was yelling as those in the cellar tripped over or slid sideways.

'_What's happening?'_ Melinda cried.

'Hold your positions, men!' Godfrey bellowed, getting a firm grip on his firearm. Kathryn tumbled over and landed on her backside, letting out a yelp as she collided with the stone floor.

It stopped just as suddenly as it started, and everyone got to their feet, starting to recover from the shock.

'What in the world was that, Kathryn?' Godfrey asked, turning to her. 'Those were _not _cannons or catapults, that is for sure.'

Kathryn got unsteadily to her feet.

'Go outside and see what is going on,' he said. Kathryn looked over at the cellar door, which had slammed shut. She made her way over to it and up the steps, pushing it back open.

What she saw almost made her heart stop.

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	11. As The Land Shatters

**Hey! **

**I'm still alive, I assure you.**

**Okay, first things first - tmd126: Really sorry - force of habit, I guess. Whenever the term is used it's just as a phrase more than anything. Though I went through and I think I got all of them and fixed them up. So, I will have to focus on not accidentally putting it in anymore, but thank you for pointing it out. **

**Cheers!**

**~Ice.**

* * *

_**11 – As The Land Shatters**_

**Kathryn**

Ocean. The ocean had come in, right up to the Allen's doorstep. Kathryn had no idea how it could have happened, but everything that had been in between the farm and the previous waterline was gone. All gone. Debris floated in the water, mainly composed of ship and house remains. There were bodies below the surface, almost out of sight amongst the murkiness.

She stifled a gasp with her hand and took a small step forward, her foot about a metre away from the waterline.

'How . . . ?'

'Kathryn!'

The yell came from further down the coastline, and Kathryn turned to see Liam running towards her. She went to meet him halfway.

'The ocean, Kathryn,' he said, like he was still in shock. 'It swallowed everything . . . the land . . . the Forsaken . . .' His face paled as he seemed to realise something. 'Our men!'

He winced visibly and put a hand to his head as though it were bothering him, then returned his attention to her.

'No time to waste. A good half of the town watch was in the area that collapsed. Get in there and save as many as you can.'

Kathryn's brow furrowed. 'But - ?'

'Make sure to get them out of the water and onto the shore. I'll make sure they get any aid they need.'

That sealed the deal. Kathryn gave a short nod and turned back to the waterline, her eyes already searching through the depths. She only vaguely knew how to swim, but she was needed.

Kathryn dove into the water and swum downwards, relying on the single breath she had taken. Reaching out before her, her hand scrabbled at what felt like a shirt sleeve, and tugging upwards, she went to pull the additional weight with her back to the surface. She found it difficult to get herself there though, as she was constantly getting pulled downwards the harder she tried. She couldn't have been more relieved when she was able to breathe again, bobbing along the surface of the water, pulling the waterlogged man with her. Adjusting him so the weight was mainly on her right shoulder, Kathryn made an attempt to paddle back towards the shore, where Liam was waiting. He waded in to meet her and relieved her of the weight, tossing the man over his own shoulders and carrying him back to shore. Kathryn took another breath and went under again, her eyes already searching. There was another silhouette not too far away, and she made her way over to it. She found it remarkable that she was managing to do this successfully and wasn't drowning yet. It was certainly a first, but there was no doubt that she would resemble a drowned rat (or dog, as that would be more fitting) after this.

She stopped moving towards the shape as the outline of it became more obvious.

Oh _no_.

Not even a bloody _cataclysm_ could stop them, could it?

The skeleton had obviously spotted her as well, as it was drawing nearer. Kathryn didn't know where she had put her knife.

Then she remembered that she didn't need one.

Force of habit, sorry.

It was time to see how well a worgen could fight underwater with a limited air supply.

Silently (there was no need for dramatics) she dove as well as she could onto the Forsaken, snapping at whatever she could see through the murky dimness. But, as usual, it wasn't long until she found the neck.

Seriously, her methods of killing were falling into a pattern. Only an idiot wouldn't see it.

Abandoning the limp corpse of the skeleton, Kathryn paddled away in search of someone genuinely living. Once she tracked down the steadily sinking, unconscious body of another man, she moved him onto her shoulder and made the difficult journey back to the top. She was beginning to realise that not many of the other who were drowning would be able to survive for much longer. Too much time had passed for it to be possible.

She broke the surface again, taking in huge gasps as her lungs were released from the strain they had been facing the last few seconds. The man she was carrying coughed violently as water was emptied from his respiratory system and he was brought into consciousness.

'Thankyou . . .' He gasped, still drawing in air. 'I owe you my life.'

'We're not there yet,' Kathryn muttered. 'I could fail in the last few seconds . . .'

Liam, who had been tending to the first man, got to his feet and ran out to meet them, once again relieving Kathryn of the weight.

'I think it's too late now,' she said, looking up at him and coughing. He chewed his bottom lip. It was a long moment before he nodded.

'You did what you could, Kathryn.' He turned and started his way back to the freshly formed beach. 'With any luck a few others will find their way to shore.'

She nodded and followed after him, tripping on debris as she was able to walk again. Liam set the man down on the ground and started pumping the remaining water out of his lungs.

'We've escaped through dumb luck, Kathryn,' he said through movements. 'But luck is running out. The coast is becoming flooded even as we speak. And from the look of it, the landmass beneath us hasn't quite settled yet.'

He then drew back onto his knees, watching the man, who had slipped back into unconsciousness. Liam hefted him back onto his shoulders, got to his feet and laid him beside the other watchman, further inland.

'I hate to say this, but we have to leave.' He took a deep breath and turned to her. 'Curses, Kathryn . . . I cannot lose my homeland twice in one lifetime. Yet these earthquakes are not an enemy we can defeat.' He paused as he began to make up his mind. 'Tell Gwen to start the evacuation.'

* * *

Duskhaven was remarkably unharmed despite what had happened, though everyone was certainly shaken by it. Many had gathered in the middle of the small town, and Gwen was at the front of this mass, trying to manage it all. She looked more than relieved when she saw Kathryn.

'Liam is right. We must get everyone to higher ground. You must help me spread the word while I manage the logistics of the evacuation. Most of the population is here . . . though there are some out in the countryside who also need to come with us.'

'Who?' Kathryn asked.

'Just three. Though, you may have some difficulty.'

Kathryn narrowed her eyes, cocking her head slightly. Uh oh.

Gwen took a breath and started, obviously knowing who she was talking about from memory.

'It's not going to be easy to get Grandma Wahl to come with us. You must do whatever you can to convince her, though. You'll find her at the Wahl Cottage. Please, Kathryn. Do not lose your patience with her. I know what you are like, but her mind is old and she's not entirely lucid.'

Kathryn scratched the back of her neck absently. 'Maybe I'm not the best -'

'No, you need to,' Gwen said, cutting over her. 'There are also the Hayward brothers who own the fishery to the south. They've been running it for years. They don't make it to town very often, except to trade their fish. You'll need to send word to them that the evacuation is underway.'

'Who else?'

Gwen bit her lip. 'And, of course you remember Lorna.'

Kathryn started violently forward, nearly tripping over her own feet in an attempt to stop. 'Lorna!'

Gwen nodded. 'She never quite recovered after losing her father in the city. She's basically led the life of a hermit. The only visitor she's allowed into her house has been Krennan . . . and he won't say a word about the whole thing. Maybe you can change that.'

'I thought she wouldn't see anyone. That's what you said, wasn't it?'

'Only Krennan,' Gwen repeated. 'You'll need to send word to her.'

* * *

Gwen wasn't lying when she said Grandma Wahl was going to be difficult.

Ignoring the tremors that shook the ground every once in a while, Kathryn followed the cobblestone path down the rocky, disturbed slope that narrowly avoided being swallowed up like the nearby farmsteads had. The Wahl Cottage was a small little property in itself, lined with a cobblestone wall. Through the little gate, Kathryn found herself in a yard with rosebushes, a shelter with chicken nesting boxes . . . and Forsaken. Rather startled by this, Kathryn went a little rampant, savagely tearing them all to bits in under a minute. There was only about four or so. Not too hard.

Looking over the wall on the other side of the yard, Kathryn could see that the ground was crumbling right before her. The huge drop off started mere metres away from the house.

Feeling slightly anxious now, Kathryn turned and knocked on the door of the little house before pushing it open.

It only had one room, and the majority of the space was dominated by a bed, a little table, and an armchair. Grandma Wahl had been sitting in the chair, and rose to greet her. She was a slight little lady, just as short as Kathryn was. She had grey hair pulled back into a bun, and was wearing a black and white cotton dress.

'A visitor!' she said, smiling. 'Are you staying for tea, sweetheart?'

'I'm afraid not, ma'am,' Kathryn replied. 'Beg your pardon, but there's an evacuation going on up in Duskhaven. I was sent to let you know that it is advisable you leave and join them. The name's Kathryn.'

Grandma blinked in surprise. 'Leave? Now?' She gave a little sigh. 'Well, if I must, then I must. But will you be a sweetheart and find something for me? I've lost my favourite book and won't leave without it.'

Kathryn blinked. _Seriously?_

'Ma'am, we really don't have the time. You really ought to be going as soon as possible, as this is really serious. The land itself is breaking apart.'

Grandma Wahl shook her head condescendingly.

'Dear, just find the book will you?'

Kathryn sighed, and went outside to retrieve the bloody book. Stopping at a rose adorned trellis on the other side of the yard past multiple rows of rose bushes, Kathryn knelt down and picked up a linen wrapped book resting comfortably on the ground as though it had been placed there. Studying it, Kathryn felt her eyebrows travel up her forehead. The book appeared to be a racy romance novel. The cover revealed a pastoral scene involving a muscular blonde man and a young woman wearing a tight bodice.

Nope. She wasn't going to question it. She just wasn't.

When she stepped back inside, Grandma Wahl accepted the book gratefully. 'Why thank you, Kathryn. I hope you didn't peek!' She looked at Kathryn scoldingly. 'Where are your manners, dear?'

'Not sure I have any,' she muttered. Grandma didn't seem to hear.

'What was it you wanted again? Oh, right. The evacuation orders. Well I can't be expected to go out in public like this, can I? Go get me my good clothes. They're on the clothesline right outside.'

Kathryn really wanted to start screeching, but she made herself appear calm and collected. She struggled in vain to convince the older lady that what she was wearing would to, but Grandma Wahl shook her head.

'You young people truly have no manners. Were you raised by ogres? Now go get my clothes, sweetie.'

Kathryn closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and went outside again. It was just clothes; it would only take a second.

_A second of precious time._

Well, Grandma wasn't leaving home unless Kathryn got the clothes. She might as well do it.

She walked around the side of the house to the clothesline, unpegged the dress (she could have sworn it looked _exactly _the same as what Grandma Wahl was already wearing) folded it neatly over her arm and walked back inside, sincerely hoping that this was the last errand to run.

'You're a peach, Kathryn! Thanks! Right! About the evacuation, dear. I just cannot leave without my cat. He's an adorable orange tabby.'

About that screeching, Kathryn was very close now. She was only holding back to prove Gwen wrong, and that she wouldn't lose her temper. Visibly.

'Chance's favourite spot to play is a broken down cart near an arbour northeast of here. Bring him here and we'll be on our way.'

_Finally_. The last damn thing!

Kathryn sighed slightly and nodded, turning back around and going outside again, instantly spotting the arbour. The cat was sitting on a rock in front of it, apparently sleeping. Kathryn walked over and went to scoop it up, but paused, her ears pricking. She could hear something.

These bloody Forsaken really had to get more original than sending assassins. _Seriously_.

A maliciously grinning skeleton man clambered out of the bushes. Kathryn eyed him , poised to strike. Perhaps she could rip his head off just by tugging (very hard) on his spiked up hair. It was possibly, certainly.

'I'll be taking this cat,' he hissed, grabbing the yowling animal by the scruff of the neck. 'It seems to work as the perfect bait. Prepare to die now, fool!'

'Oh no,' Kathryn said, baring her teeth. '_You_ prepare to die!'

He lunged. Kathryn was shoved to the ground and she snapped at him, scrabbling with her hands to get at his neck.

A new voice joined the fray. 'You do not mess with my kitty you son of a mongrel!'

Grandma was standing there, rolling pin in hand. She screamed as her form started morphing, and Kathryn had to look away, rolling over and pinning the Forsaken to the ground. A second worgen (Grandma Wahl? Really?) dove onto him and started tearing at his limbs. While he was distracted, Kathryn followed through with her specialty move and separated his head from his neck.

When she looked up again, Grandma was gone.

Blinking and feeling stunned, Kathryn reached out for the tabby cat, which was a little shaken, but in good shape . . . all things considered.

Upon walking back inside, the old lady was still there as though nothing had ever happened, in her human form. Kathryn froze to think about it (how did she _do_ that? Could she show Kathryn?) then handed over the cat.

'There he is! Grandma's special boy! Thank you so much for finding him. I hope it wasn't too much trouble.' Kathryn very nearly snorted.

'My . . .' Grandma said, inspecting her hands. 'What manner of dirt found its way underneath my fingernails!'

* * *

**Yeah, I'm leaving the Kathryn/Lorna reunion for next chapter - it would drag on too long otherwise. I like to keep the chapters for this story about 2000 words, and update frequently rather than have big ones and update say, once a month.  
**

**Remember to review!**

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**Last edited: 16/1/16  
**


	12. To Greymane Manor

**A bit of a wait there . . .**

**Oops?**

* * *

_**12 – To Greymane Manor**_

**Kathryn**

Even after the huge amount of water had been brought in, the Hayward Fishery was still remotely intact.

Further away from Duskhaven than the Wahl cottage, the fishery was under an attack of its own. Some of the Forsaken that had survived the sudden upheaval had dragged themselves out of the water, and despite being waterlogged, were pushing the attack.

The landmass leading down to her destination was swampy and obviously affected – this became more than certain when she came to a destroyed bridge and had to jump from one side to the other.

When she landed, Kathryn nearly fell backwards as the ground shook again; gently, but noticeably all the same. She steadied herself then charged down to the small-scale battle, ready to help out the men. There was a house and a small scattering of sheds there, all of which were slightly affected by the sudden shakings of the earth. Two boats were pushed up against the shore and undergoing repair; a brother was inside one, fixing it, while the others were fighting off the dead that were coming in droves.

Letting out a little battle cry that she came up with on the spot, Kathryn dove onto one of the invaders, and pinned him to the ground before tearing him apart. The man who was working looked up.

'You here to give us a hand?'

'We're leaving Duskhaven,' she told him, lashing out at another of the skeletons.

'Evacuation, then? Well, we had that very same idea all on our own after these Forsaken started showing up. We were thinking the water would be the safest way out of here.'

Kathryn nodded, seeing the logic behind this.

'Unfortunately our boats didn't come out from that last earthquake unscathed. I need some additional supplies to finish my repairs: wood, tar and my tools. Get them for me so that my brothers and I can make it out of here.'

Kathryn turned and leapt off the boat on to the shore, and looked around. Underneath a shelter made of four posts, a roof and a back wall, a few unfinished boats were stacked, and some wood was piled just below them. Kathryn hefted up about fifteen of those long boards over her shoulders and started back towards the boat, the wood moving about dangerously. One of the dead started running towards her, and, as though he were nothing more than a pesky fly, she kicked him to the ground and deliberately trod on his skull as she went past. Kathryn stepped back up on to the boat and deposited the boards beside the man, before turning back again.

The tar he needed was in a barrel outside of one of the fish sheds. Without any real difficulty, she lugged it back and dumped it beside the wood. The man thanked her gratefully and told her his name was Sebastian, but never looked up from what he was doing, still hard at work. Kathryn had to admire that about him.

Lastly, she ran over to the house where she assumed the tools would be kept, and indeed, when she ran into the front room, a container packed full of hammers and bolts was sitting on a table. Kathryn swiped them up and shoved another of the dead out of the way, sending him crashing into one of the sheds. Not even bothering to stop and check if he was dead, she ran straight through the chaos back to Sebastian.

'Thanks for your help, Kathryn,' he said. 'This ship is almost ready to sail. Now you go and tell Miss Armstead that we're not going to be part of the land evacuation. We Haywards have been men of the sea for generations. If we're to leave our home, then we'll do it by sea.'

Kathryn blinked, then nodded slowly. 'Okay. I need to go, anyway.'

Realisation stirred in the back of her mind. She really _did_ need to go.

Lorna. She had to find Lorna.

Damn it, she hadn't seen her in _so_ long. And worse, Lorna was under the impression she was dead. Kathryn had a feeling that if your supposedly dead best friend showed up ten months later as one of the beasts that killed your father . . . well, you wouldn't react the best. Kathryn was already wired to run in the opposite direction if she really needed to.

Following a path she had taken so many times before in her life, she watched the Crowley Orchard grow closer, and noted the feeling of anxiety that also rose in her chest.

She was afraid. Afraid of what would happen, how Lorna would see her, and worst of all, how she would react. What was going to happen in the next few minutes could be what determined Kathryn's mental health for the rest of her already torn apart life.

She made her way through the cluster of evenly planted fruit trees, almost able to see through the window now. Her heart started pounding and she tried in vain to steady her breathing without prevail.

The front door was mere metres away . . .

Then, suddenly she was standing before it. How did she get there so fast? Kathryn raised a shaking hand to the wooden surface, and with the other, turned the handle.

There was the sound of sudden and violent crashing from inside, and spurred on by the sudden thought of the dead breaking in, Kathryn smashed the door open.

'Stay back! Don't make me . . .'

Lorna was backed up against a wall, blunderbuss in hand and aimed straight at her. She was just as unkempt has Liam had been, but obviously not drunk. Kathryn cringed.

'Don't shoot! My life may be miserable and permanently messed up, but I want to live a little longer!'

Lorna's eyes widened in horrified shock. 'Is it you? Always having the need to make an entrance? Always . . . By the Light!' The gun slipped from her hands, and they went to her mouth as she choked out an exclamation. 'It's _you_, Kathryn!'

'The one and only . . .'

Lorna looked as though she were about to burst into tears. 'But you can't be,' she whispered. 'You're _dead._ Not . . . oh, _Kathryn_.'

'Can I at least have a hug?' Kathryn asked pointedly. 'Some sign that you're grateful and relieved at my miraculous return from the supposed claws of death? Oops, bad pun. Sorry.'

Lorna was still standing stock still, her eyes still surveying Kathryn's lupine form in both fear and sadness.

'I just – I can't . . .' She was still whispering, and Kathryn felt her heart plummet. _Oh no_. Not . . . no . . .

'There's an evacuation,' she muttered half-heartedly, her gaze wandering down to her feet. 'Up in Duskhaven. You should go.' She turned to leave.

'Wait, Kathryn –_ no_! –'

Kathryn made an _oomph_ as something warm collided with her. Lorna was hugging her tightly with her arms wrapped around her waist and her face buried into the fur on the back of her neck. 'I'm _so _sorry, that was stupid to do, I -'

The girl was genuinely sobbing now, and her words became incoherent. But Kathryn caught the gist of it.

'No, I know,' she said, her mouth dry. 'Your father . . . and you thought they'd gotten me, too.'

Lorna drew in a shaky breath and looked up, wiping her slightly puffy eyes. 'I missed you, Kathryn.'

Kathryn also inhaled unsteadily as she absorbed those words. Her eyes prickled slightly. 'I – I missed you too, Lor.'

* * *

The sun was setting as the two girls rounded up mountain horses for the convenience of the people of Duskhaven, and brought them up to town together. Gwen was relieved at these arrivals, because as Lorna said, Duskhaven had plenty of carriages but not enough horses to pull them.

'It's time for everyone to head to safety,' she said, harnessing a horse to one of the said carriages. Lorna had left to help others with the same thing, leading the chestnut coloured mares to where they needed to be. 'That includes you, Kathryn. Head to Greymane Manor, the others will be there shortly.'

Kathryn opened her mouth to argue, but as though she could read her mind (most likely she could), Gwen shushed her.

'Don't worry about me. I'll make sure that everyone makes it out of here in one piece. Yes, even the few ferals we have in the pens.'

It was at that statement Kathryn raised her eyebrows. Gwen gave a small laugh at her confusion. 'You're not the only stable one of your kind, Kathryn. Don't go about feeling so high of yourself,' she joked. Then, as suddenly as it had happened, she resumed her sober tone.

'Once you get there, you'd best speak to Queen Greymane about what's going on here.'

* * *

Lorna had loaned her a steed for the trip up to the manor that sat on the mountain far away in the distance, and the trip there wasn't the smoothest. Even though the horse was designed for slopes, it didn't change the fact that Kathryn was constantly bouncing around and getting rather saddle-sore all too quickly. It was a twenty minute trip at the least, as the horse had to navigate rifts in the path that was already there.

After passing through a set of iron gates and into the manor courtyard, Kathryn pulled the horse to a stop and slid off, more than relieved for the trip to be over.

'Fancy seeing you here.' Kathryn whirled around, slightly startled, to see Liam walking over to her, hands in pockets. He seemed rather stable now.

Addressing this fact, Kathryn narrowed her eyes. 'You were _drunk_.'

He shrugged slightly, looking nonchalant. 'Krennan works wonders.'

That cleared it all up. 'Ah.' Now, next question.

'If your great, big, fancy house is all the way up here, _surely_ you wouldn't have made the trip just to float around Duskhaven.'

Liam blinked in surprise, then laughed as though he hadn't really contemplated the thought before.

'We were borrowing a small house in town to keep an eye on the situation. We've only really just come up to the manor now.'

That explained why he was looking better dressed. And had a shirt on. She really noticed that now. Shame, really. He had a nice torso. Lots of muscles. Quite frankly, she didn't mind getting an eyeful down at the shore.

_What?_ She was female! She was allowed to be like that!

'_Aaaand_ why are you up here now?' she asked.

He made a wild gesture with his hands. 'Evacuation? Does it ring a bell?'

Kathryn snorted. 'Um, _yeah_.'

He sighed. 'I'm not getting anywhere with you. Come on.'

He turned to walk in to the building, then paused when she didn't follow, looking back around. 'Aren't you going to . . . come in? Most of the population is already here.'

She shook her head. 'I'm waiting for Lorna.'

'She was minding the horses, right?' When she nodded, he continued. 'I don't think she will be coming for a while. You might as well come in.'

Kathryn shook her head again. Liam quirked an eyebrow, looking faintly amused.

'If you don't walk in here of your own accord, I will _come_ over there and bring you in the hard way. Human or not, you look as lightweight as ever.'

She smirked at him and deliberately stood her ground. 'I'd like to see you try.'

He shrugged, then smirked right back. 'Very well then.'

Then, before she could really react, he marched on over, picked her up, then tossed her over his shoulder. Kathryn squawked and bristled at this abuse, smacking a fist against his back and craning her neck to see where he was going. Liam just laughed again, clearing enjoying her discomfort. Without further ado, he walked into the huge entrance hall of the manor, where hundreds of people were gathered. Supplies and rations were getting distributed amongst them, all from the royals' own stocks.

'Liam.' A female voice spoke up, somewhere nearby. Kathryn huffed and gave up on trying to wriggle out of the prince's iron grip.

'Evening, Mother,' Liam replied. Kathryn could _hear_ the annoying grin in his tone. Then, his words fully registered and she froze, her face flaming red.

_Damn it._

No one had better get the wrong idea, here.

'It's not polite to carry a lady like that. You know that.' Despite what she was reprimanding him for, the queen sounded just as amused as her son.

'She's too temperamental to count as a lady.' But all the same, Liam deposited Kathryn on the (remotely) firm ground, and she found herself face-to-face with none other than Queen Mia Greymane.

Kathryn hastily dropped into an attempted curtsey, the shape of her legs causing obvious failure. Mia just laughed slightly.

'Kathryn. I've heard much about you.' She cast an amused glance towards her son, who had turned to talk to someone Kathryn didn't know.

Kathryn flushed again. He _didn't_.

'I understand you were crucial in my family's survival during the outbreak in Gilneas City,' she continued. Simply by the way that she said it, Kathryn could tell that when the queen said "family", she really meant "Liam". Kathryn had no idea why she had done that, but she pretended not to notice it.

'You ought to speak to Genn,' Mia continued. 'He's been locked up in his observatory ever since this ordeal started. I'm sure he's working on a plan for his people. He's a very stubborn individual.'

Kathryn's eyes wandered over to Liam again. _Ah_. So _that's_ where it came from . . .

'But,' the other woman said, interrupting Kathryn's train of thought, 'not now. Rest for the present moment, until everyone is accounted for. Then all of the important news can be announced once, and everyone will know.'

Kathryn could see the reasoning behind this, and didn't object. Seeming satisfied with this, Mia turned away and disappeared into the crowd. Liam made his way back to Kathryn.

'Come with me,' he said. Raising her eyebrows, but not wanting to be humiliatingly tossed over his shoulder again, she let him take her by the hand and lead her away. He finally stopped at an empty patch of floor in a corner of the colossal room, and they both sat down.

'I thought you were too posh for sitting on the floor,' Kathryn said loftily. Liam rolled his eyes.

'Very funny. Now, tell me about yourself.'

Kathryn blinked in surprise. 'What? Why?'

He paused on that question for a moment, thinking over it rather thoroughly. Seconds passed. Kathryn was starting to think she wouldn't get an answer at all when he replied.

'Making up for lost time.'

* * *

**Aww. The poor bugger feels guilty.  
**

**Review, please!**

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**Last edited: 16/1/16  
**


	13. Exodus

**Hey! It's been two months since this story was started, (plus a couple of days . . . oops) and I have to say: WE'RE OVER HALF WAY! If I keep plodding along at an awesome pace, we might be done in four to five weeks! Yeah! . . . maybe. We'll see.  
**

**Cheers!  
**

**~Ice. **

* * *

_**13 – Exodus**_

**Liam**

She paused, then her eyebrows travelled up her head. 'What do I talk about? I'm not a very interesting person.'

'I beg to differ.'

'I decline your request to differ.' A satisfied smirk pulled on Kathryn's wolfish features when she said this, as if she was thinking: _Ha! Beat that!_

'Well,' he said slowly. 'If you won't tell me everything, at least tell me how you got this.' He reached out to brush along her jawline up near her ear, right where he knew where the scar was. He could feel it slightly underneath the fur. Kathryn initially flinched at his touch, then seemed to lean into it, before apparently deciding to pull away. Liam brought his hand back to his side and cleared his throat awkwardly.

'I had a tangle with some fruit trees,' she said after a long minute. 'At Lorna's house. We were out in the orchard, and . . .' She trailed off and laughed slightly. '. . . being the cocky little brat I was, I felt the need to go ridiculously high up. In the trees, I mean.'

'You're still a brat.' Liam felt he needed to say that, and he grinned slightly. Instead of being offended, however, Kathryn just smiled back at him, rolling her eyes. 'I know.'

'Anyway, I took a rather long tumble, smacking into branches and all that on my way down. But in the end, I was too busy laughing at the expression on Lorna's face to care.' She grinned at him, amusement sparkling in her eyes. Liam felt a tugging in his stomach he couldn't quite explain.

'I have to say I wasn't expecting that,' he joked. 'I thought there would be a few pirates or something similar in the least.'

Kathryn just shook her head. 'No pirates.'

'Shame, that.'

She gave a wry smile. 'What else did you want to know?'

Liam blinked; he hadn't really been preparing anything to ask. After a moment, he posed something.

'Did you ever know your father?'

Kathryn looked slightly to the left, as though deciding how to phrase this question, then her eyes met his. 'I know he was from Stormwind,' she started. 'And he met my mother before the wall went up. He lived with her for a few years, but shortly after I was born, he just . . . disappeared. I think he's dead.'

'Oh.' Liam's mouth suddenly went very dry. 'I'm sorry,'

She waved him off. 'Don't worry about it. I never really knew him. It's not really a tragedy for me.'

'Do you get your eyes from him?'

She blinked in surprise. 'Erm, yes. I guess so. I mean, he wasn't Gilnean.'

'So you haven't exactly had the best luck?' Liam said. 'Where have you lived since your mother . . . ?' Despite him trailing off, Kathryn still answered.

'On the streets.'

He raised his eyebrows. 'Surely not!'

She raised her eyebrows right back at him. 'Surely _yes_. I stayed with Gwen until I was fifteen, then I took off.'

'You rebel.'

'I know.'

'I'm surprised she didn't lug you back home with her. She's definitely the sort to do so.'

Kathryn grinned. 'Believe me, she has tried.'

That got a laugh out of him, and a few of the survivors nearby turned to stare for a few seconds, before returning to their business.

In a quieter tone, Kathryn continued. She had to lean in closer for him to hear her. 'She threatened that if I didn't stay, she would refuse to do my laundry whenever I turned up. And she has kept to her word. Soap hasn't touched me since.'

'And you never bothered to learn how to keep yourself clean?' Liam inquired, smirking. She shook her head.

'I'd just take a dip in the canals, fully clothed,' she said. 'Kill two birds with one stone.'

He shook his head. 'You, Kathryn Weiss, are unbelievable. What sort of a housewife would you make?'

'A rotten one,' she responded. 'I've got too much of an attitude to find myself a man.'

They both laughed at that comment.

'What would you do if my mother took you upstairs for a bath?' he asked. 'A good, proper bath and clean clothes to change into?'

She wrinkled her nose. 'Ew!'

'There would be _soap_,' he said teasingly. Kathryn shook her head aggressively. 'No. No, no, no, no, no. Nope. Nuh uh. I have gotten used to my own smell, thank you very much.'

'Good thing you don't stink something horrible,' Liam said, laughing. 'Only like dog.'

She pulled a face at him. 'I do _not_ smell like dog. Dogs tend to do things that _I_ don't. So I smell normal. Next question, please.'

'Do you -' He hesitated, then tried again. 'Do you want to be human again?'

Kathryn took a steady breath. 'You can't imagine _how_ much . . .' She hesitated, as though she was going to say something.

'What?' Liam prodded.

'Grandma Wahl,' she said. 'She's a worgen.'

Liam blinked. 'But -'

'That's the thing,' she said, cutting over him. 'She can switch between being human and beast. And I want to know how she does it.'

'How is that possible?' Liam muttered, staring intently at a spot on the floor, thinking.

'I don't know,' Kathryn whispered. 'But even _that_ would be better than nothing.'

'Maybe . . . maybe the answer will come in time.' He looked back up at her and had a strong urge to move on from this topic, mainly from seeing the look on her face. 'So . . . you've never been with a man?'

She laughed slightly. 'That was random. But, no. I haven't. Like you said, I'm "too temperamental to count as a lady". I think I've scared off just about every bloke who's shown even the _slightest _interest, which, mind you, isn't many.' She grinned at him, seeming delighted by the fact.

'Well, you've never really put out the friendliest aura, have you?' Liam noted with a smirk. She nodded in agreement.

'And now, I have absolutely _no_ chance, even if I wanted to find someone,' she said, 'as I am Gilneas' resident _dog_.'

Liam rolled his eyes. 'You're not the only one.'

She huffed. 'I know. But I certainly feel like it.'

'Give it time,' he encouraged. 'Maybe Krennan will even find a cure.'

Kathryn drew in a sharp breath. 'Oh, _damn it_. That reminds me . . .'

Liam felt his stomach drop, and a sense of dread came over him. 'What?'

'The mandrake essence,' she whispered. 'It was destroyed. And the potion . . .' She looked up at him, her face gaunt. 'I don't know how long I have left.'

'Before you . . . oh.' Liam swallowed. This wasn't good. At all. 'Did he . . . did he say how long it would last?'

She shook her head. 'I don't know.'

Liam stared past her and out the window. The sky was strewn with grey clouds, but the moon was just visible through them. The terrain spread out below the manor was dark with shadows, and it was difficult to see anything. It was like trying to see the future, really. Like trying to see Kathryn's fate.

* * *

**Kathryn**

The sky was still dark when Kathryn woke up, and though she could see remarkably better than she could as a human, she didn't really like it. Darkness brought a sense of blindness with it, and Kathryn hated being blind.

She was tucked up next to something warm, and despite realising this, for some reason, Kathryn wasn't surprised. It was just sort of the '_oh, I'm pressed up against one's person. Okay,' _kind of reaction.

She blinked blearily and sat up with a quiet yawn, stretching out her numb legs. Apparently, her body was used to sleeping like a worgen does, not like a human. Well, bugger that. Kathryn still wanted to think of herself like a human, so she was doing her best to act like one.

Liam was sleeping on the floor next to her, apparently not caring that he was on hard, bare wood. Kathryn couldn't help but smile slightly at that. He really _wasn't_ puffed up at all. He was perfectly normal. She liked that. And she didn't even care that she was almost sleeping on top of him. What he didn't know wouldn't kill him. Unless she fell asleep first. She couldn't even remember, actually . . . As far as she knew, she had only slept for a few hours.

Oh well. She got to her feet and stretched out a bit more, looking towards the staircase. The soft murmur of voices was wafting down it.

She was "rested" now, she guessed. Maybe Greymane was still up in the observatory. Kathryn navigated herself through the masses of sleeping bodies all over the floor, attempting not to step on anyone.

At the top of the staircase, there was a landing with a doorway at each end. Through both of them, Kathryn could see two more arches that led to the outside. Taking the left one, Kathryn then found herself on a wooden balcony that met up with the other exit. In the middle, a single staircase stretched out to a stone tower set a few yards away from the manor. The stairs ran through an opening in the tower and out to the other side, before spiralling upwards along the outside of the structure. It led up to the top of the tower, which was open-plan with a roof resting atop multiple arch-like pillars. A giant golden telescope sat atop a black pole out on the floor. Next to it, Genn and Mia halted their conversation as they saw Kathryn arrive. Kathryn paused, suddenly feeling very anxious. She meant to apologise for intruding, but for some reason couldn't force the words out.

'Kathryn,' Mia finally said. 'It's very late. You didn't want to come tomorrow?' Despite the kindness in her voice, she was evidently very tired. Kathryn just shook her head. Her voice was still failing her.

'Very well, then. I will leave you.' With a small nod to both of them, she disappeared down the stairs.

'I've been expecting you,' Genn said, striding over to her. 'I got word of your recovery and . . .' He paused suddenly. '. . . wait - do you feel that?'

Kathryn hadn't noticed before, but she could certainly feel it now. The ground was shaking again, getting steadily more violent with each tremor. It finally reached the point where Kathryn was gripping onto the telescope in order to not fall over, it was shaking that badly. Was the land breaking apart again? It certainly hadn't settled from last time. She could hear the land cracking and crumbling, and she could hear the churning of the ocean as it washed over the land. It was difficult to see all that much, but Kathryn knew it was happening.

It was several, long minutes before this movement finally stopped. When it did, Kathryn detached herself from the telescope and looked at Greymane inquiringly. He was peering through the darkness, able to see slightly better as the tips of the sky towards the east were finally starting to light up pink. It must have been four in the morning, at the latest.

'Look, Kathryn!' he said, looking horrified. 'Look at what's become of Duskhaven! Look at what's become of the _last_ safe place in Gilneas!'

Kathryn took in the scene before her in shock. There _was_ no Duskhaven. The water had come in and swallowed the town and some of the surrounding land up whole. It was all gone. And worse yet, out on the ocean, the Forsaken were pressing forward in their ships. They had also brought in an airship.

'We have no choice, Kathryn,' Genn said. 'We must move further inland. I don't like it one bit, but we're vulnerable here. Return to the stables below the manor. Let's get everybody on carriages and send them eastbound. I pray it's not too late.'

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**Last edited: 16/1/16  
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	14. Stormglen

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_**14 – Stormglen**_

**Kathryn**

When Kathryn returned downstairs, she found herself amidst chaos. The ground shaking again had woken the population that was sleeping in the entrance hall, and everyone had crowded around the doors, trying to get out. Kathryn unashamedly pushed herself through this commotion, before popping out the other side a few seconds later.

No sooner than after she had done this, there was a relieved cry of 'Kathryn!' and she was enveloped in warm arms and nice smells.

Well, what else could she say? Liam had this annoying habit of always smelling good.

'Damn it,' he muttered, 'you disappeared and there was another bloody earthquake, and I had no idea where you were – are you okay?' He abruptly turned her around to inspect her up and down. Kathryn found it mildly amusing, seeing his forehead crease and his eyes dart back and forth for no reason at all. She gave him a playful shove. 'I'm _fine_.' But the humour wore off then as she remembered they needed to get going.

'We're retreating to Stormglen,' she told him. She gestured quickly to the carriages. 'Your father ordered that everyone needs to get into those, so we'll move faster.' She looked up at him. 'That's fine, yeah?'

Liam gave a short nod, then turned to the carriages himself. 'There should be enough,' he muttered. He took Kathryn by the wrist. 'Come on.'

She eyed his grip on her, but he didn't let go, pulling open the door and piling Kathryn inside. Instead of joining her however, he turned back around and went back inside the manor. Kathryn just crossed her arms and waited.

Less than a minute later, he surfaced, Lorna in tow. Guards then arrived to take control of the situation, directing civilians to their carriages. Lorna barely had time to spare Kathryn a quick smile before hauling herself atop the carriage. Liam passed up her blunderbuss and in the split second their hands touched, Kathryn felt something irritable grow in the bottom of her chest. It disappeared instantly though, as Liam climbed into the carriage and shut the door. Only now did Kathryn realise how small it actually was.

There was a long silence. A _very_ long one. In an attempt to ignore it, Kathryn looked out the window and watched the first carriage disappear down a different path down the slope. The carriage they were in suddenly jolted, and they followed in suit.

Going south east, the carriage followed a path that made its way slowly downwards, hugging the side of the cliff. There was another a short distance away, that looked as though it had originally been one mountain, separated in two during the numerous quakes Gilneas had suffered over the past day. It continued downwards until the terrain levelled out for a few yards, where the carriage crossed a stone bridge, before continuing down the slope. It was just one cliff now, and the expanse of ground below it was swampy marshland.

_Smash!_

The carriage jolted as though it had just ridden over something large, and Kathryn very nearly flew off her seat. She put out her hands in time and slammed against the opposite wall however, and prevented any injury. Liam, who was evidently more concerned on trying to get a look at what happened, absently grabbed her by the arm, his strong grip keeping her still. Kathryn glared at him, but he paid her no heed.

_Smash!_

Everything jerked violently, and the carriage started to run on a lean. Kathryn started slipping to the right as another ear-breaking smash seemed to cave the front of the carriage in.

Liam swore viciously as the horses screamed and stopped suddenly. The carriage whirled around and flew off, smashing into the hard, rocky ground.

Kathryn hadn't realised she had been cringing until the wreckage had caved in on top of her. She coughed violently as dirt and dust rose in a cloud around her, entering her respiratory system and hindering her breathing. She didn't dare open her eyes, but could feel the crushing weight of wood pressing her down.

Damn it, she was lucky to be alive.

With a slight groan, she blindly started pushing the weight off her. Through it all, she could hear a slightly muffled voice calling her name. For some reason Kathryn couldn't find it in her to reply, and instead focused on making sure her leg wasn't actually broken.

After a moment she decided it wasn't, and hauled her top half above the mess, opening her eyes to find early morning daylight through the powder settling around her. The carriage was a complete wreck, shattered beyond repair.

What had happened?

'Kathryn!'

All of a sudden Liam was there, helping to pull some of the splintered wood off her. When enough had been shifted, he helped Kathryn to her feet. 'Are you okay?'

As usual, she waved him off irritably. 'I'm fine. But what the bloody hell happened?'

He grimaced, and gestured to the cliff behind them. 'See for yourself.'

So Kathryn saw, and she did not like it one bit.

There were ogres standing up there on the rocky terrain, hefting giant boulders over their heads before lobbing them at passing carriages. Only two had been hit so far; the one that had been in front of them, and their own. After seeing what had happened, the next stagecoach led the others on a safer route, away from the ogres.

'The one in front of us got it worse,' Lorna said grimly, making her way from behind them to stand beside Kathryn.

Kathryn looked around. She had just assumed the carriage in front of them had been damaged, but she hadn't been sure. Lorna pointed to the marsh just below the cliff, and feeling slightly horrified, Kathryn took in what had happened.

It seemed as though the stagecoach had actually plummeted off the side of the cliff, landing in a messy heap at the bottom. From what she could see, there were survivors, but it was a shocking sight all the same.

'Right,' Liam said, looking at Kathryn. 'I want you to head there and rescue any survivors while we hatch up a plan to deal with these ogres.' He gestured to Lorna while he said that, and the feeling of irritation Kathryn had been sporting not long ago had returned. She watched the pair of them with slightly narrowed eyes as her non-existent eyebrows travelled up her forehead.

'What?' Liam asked. 'Did I do something?'

_Very funny_.

Kathryn didn't reply. She just turned on her heel and made a beeline to the marshes.

* * *

She vented her newfound moodiness on the crocolisks inhabiting the marsh. Well, she was allowed to, considering that the said crocolisks were attacking the survivors, and it gave her good reason to be extremely violent. She didn't know why she was so angry, though. Liam, he . . . he could talk to whatever girl he wanted to. Kathryn really didn't care. She had no claims; he could do as he pleased. And that was fine.

Wasn't it?

No, she did _not_ like him. Not that way. Well, she was pretty sure she didn't. Besides, they were _friends_. Nothing more, nothing less. And even if the circumstances were different, Kathryn's life had permanently taken a turn for the worst. She was a _worgen_ now, and that was a huge scale tipper.

She was walking back to the crash site as a thought occurred to her. Would she get _fleas_ if she didn't do something about it? Her skin started crawling just thinking of it. She shuddered; she hoped not.

The survivors of the plummet the carriage had taken had all gathered where the second one had crashed, and Liam smiled in relief when he saw Kathryn approaching. 'You've done it again, Kathryn,' he said. 'You have my thanks.'

Kathryn's nose twitched.

'The Forsaken are right on our heels and now these ogres are trying to flank us.'

'I've gathered that myself, thanks,' she muttered irritably. Liam just shook his head exasperatedly, the smallest of smiles playing on his lips.

'They're servants of the ettin Koroth - the meanest, most destructive force in all of Gilneas. If we can bait Koroth into charging the Forsaken's forward force, we should be able to cover our retreat and buy some time. The only way this can work is if we make Koroth furious. It won't be enough to just kill his minions. We need to swipe his most prized possession, a tiger-skinned banner.'

Kathryn folded her arms. 'How do _you_ know all this, huh?'

Liam sighed. 'Not now. Save it for later. We're short on time at the moment.'

'I'll come with you,' Lorna said, threading her arm through Kathryn's and linking them by the elbows. 'I can take out any of the ogres on the slope while you steal the banner.'

Kathryn let out a short bark of laughter. 'Oh sure. Go ahead and leave the difficult job to me.'

'Ah, pish posh,' Lorna said. 'Come on.'

* * *

'WHO DARES TO TOUCH KOROTH'S BANNER? YOU PUNY THEIF! KOROTH FIND YOU! KOROTH SMASH YOUR FACE IN!'

Those were certainly not the friendliest of parting words as Kathryn and Lorna sprinted down the slope. The filthy, tiger skin banner was bundled up in Kathryn's arms, and Lorna was carrying the wooden pole it stood upon. Lorna had shot all of the ogres they had seen along the way straight through the head, so there were no interventions as they got back to Liam.

'Just in time,' he said, relieving them of the banner. 'Here come the Forsaken.' He ran forward and drove the banner into the ground just as the Forsaken started spilling down the path towards them.

'You will come no further, Forsaken scum!' he roared. 'By the war banner of the ancient Greymane clan, I expel you from our ancestral lands!'

'Worthless mongrel,' one of the grotesque corpse men shouted back. 'I will order our outhouses cleaned with this rag you call a banner!'

It really was impeccable timing when the ettin made his appearance. He thundered down the slope, shaking the ground as he did so. His beady little eyes saw the banner before the army of Forsaken, and he had come to the conclusion Liam wanted him to. 'CORPSE-MEN TAKE KOROTH'S BANNER! CORPSE-MEN GET SMASHED TO BITSES!'

'Let's go,' Liam told the group. 'We won't want to stay here. Our carriage drivers were told to regroup in Stormglen. Father said our scouts report there might be shelter and supplies to be found there.'

Kathryn hoped he was right. She was tired of running.

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**Last edited: 17/1/16  
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	15. Pieces of the Past

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_**15 – Pieces of the Past**_

**Kathryn**

Over the course of that day, it was remotely uneventful in Kathryn's opinion. The small, abandoned town of Stormglen was partially overrun by large, white spiders, so she and Lorna took it upon themselves to clean the infestation out. Then, deciding that it would be best to attack the heart of the problem, they trekked into the woods to the north and sought out the brood mother in her lair. That task took up a considerable amount of time, and also kept them remotely entertained while the rest of those evacuated from Duskhaven were sorted out back in town. Not that killing giant, skittering spiders was . . . _fun,_ exactly, but they certainly weren't bored.

By the time the sun was starting to set again, almost everything was in manageable order; everyone had a place to sleep, there were no more spiders to be seen, and the Forsaken had been held off for the time being. As of the moment, everyone needed a proper rest that went uninterrupted.

Kathryn and Lorna went into Stormglen's inn, where they met up with Gwen and the Greymanes. Lorna went to inform Gwen of the resolved spider issue while Kathryn loitered awkwardly around the doorway, unsure of what to do with herself now. She stared outside into the darkness. Stormglen sat on the edge of a dropoff into the ocean – something Kathryn was sure wasn't there before the earthquakes began. The streets were strewn with flyaway burlap sacks and sheets of parchment. Dust had settled on everything that went untouched by wind. There were still supplies left behind. But there was enough to keep the survivors going for the next few days, and they had a roof over their heads. It was enough to ask for a night or two.

Kathryn jumped in surprise as someone tapped her lightly on the shoulder. She hadn't heard anyone approach.

'You look knackered,' Liam murmured, close to her ear. He was laughing slightly. Kathryn pulled a face.

'What's so funny?'

'I could have sworn you nearly dropped off a minute ago.'

She huffed. '_You_ weren't the one chased down a mountain by an ettin first thing this morning. _You_ weren't the one hunting down that huge black spider in the forest this afternoon. _You _weren't the one nearly flattened by a boulder when Lorna thought it would be funny to stir up the said spider and have it chase after us, knocking things out of the way in its determination to kill us. Being in my place, _you_ would be tired too, mister.'

Liam raised his hands in surrender and stepped back, still laughing. 'Okay, okay. You win.'

She grumbled.

'Someone's moody.'

She looked up at him. There was a small cut just above his eyebrow, and a bruise was swelling slightly underneath. 'What happened?'

He just stared at her blankly. 'What?'

She reached out and poked it lightly. '_This_, silly.'

He looked off to the side, flushing slightly. 'It's not the most flattering story.'

Kathryn smirked. 'Oh?'

He sighed. 'Yeah.'

'So? What did you do?'

He didn't say anything for a moment, then muttered. 'Ran into the doorway.'

She scoffed. 'I do that on a daily basis. Though my way of doing it is a little more impressive. I _ricochet_ off the frame, not just smack into it.'

He laughed. 'But that's because you're so small, even inanimate objects can toss you around.'

Kathryn sighed, then scowled at him. 'Back to the height jibes, are we?'

'Did they ever leave?'

'You're impossible.'

'And you're stubborn. What's new?'

'And how do you know that?'

He sat down on the floor, his back against the wall. Kathryn tentatively sunk down next to him, before looking at him inquiringly.

'That's the thing,' Liam said. 'I feel like I've known you forever, even though I really haven't.'

'I suppose the feeling's mutual, then,' Kathryn murmured.

He looked at her. 'It is?'

'Yes.'

* * *

**Lorna**

Lorna didn't sleep at all that night. She had tossed and turned on her bedroll, staring at the web adorned ceiling above her, but tiredness failed to claim her.

She got to her feet, and crossed the bedroom in the inn, navigating her way through the bodies sleeping on the floor. On the opposite wall there was a dresser, where she knew there was a candle. She lit it, then made her way down the stairs and outside onto the street.

She pushed open the door to the first house she approached, and was surprised to find it unlocked. The flickering flame of the candle cast a yellow glow around the small room she stepped into. Lorna stepped forward and set the candle on the dining table positioned in the middle of the room and looked around. Papers that looked as though they had been torn from a book were strewn over the floor and the furniture. They shifted slightly as she moved. Lorna bent down to pick one up, and scanned over the handwritten text upon it.

_. . . they are feral creatures, and their minds have been taken over by something powerful. Man no longer, they savage anything in their path. Few have been inflicted by the Curse at the present moment, but that could change at any given time. There is talk of leaving both this town and Curse behind, and finding somewhere safer to live. However I fear it may be too late before such arrangements can be finalised . . ._

The writing cut off there, obviously continuing onto the next page. Lorna turned it over, but the other of the paper was completely blank. Maybe there was more around this room.

Kneeling down, Lorna scooped all of the dusty scraps of paper together into a pile. On the other side of the room, what looked like the cover of the journal sat as though it had been flung against the wall. Lorna picked it up. There were still plenty of pages inside the journal, but the pages Lorna had just found must have been torn out. On the cover of the journal, the name _Bradshaw_ was written in black ink.

As Lorna poured over the pages, a spark of hope flickered within her. Maybe, just _maybe_ . . .

There was a creak as the door opened again, and Lorna jumped violently as she looked up from where she was sitting on the dusty floor.

'Kathryn?'

The weakest of smiles crossed her best friend's lupine features as she surveyed the room around them. 'What are you doing in here, Lorna?'

'I couldn't sleep,' she replied. Kathryn just nodded, and sat down beside her.

'I know how you feel.'

Lorna nodded. 'Where's Liam?'

Kathryn huffed. 'Unlike me, that man can sleep like a log.'

She laughed slightly. 'Well, then.'

'Mmm.' Kathryn's eyes travelled to the pages held in Lorna's hands. 'What have you got there?'

'I found a journal. I might be able to piece together what happened here after the Curse broke out. Who knows . . . maybe the people in this town found a way out. Maybe there are still survivors out there.' She took a deep breath as she revealed the thought that stuck to her the most. 'Maybe my father is still alive.'

Kathryn paused as she absorbed that statement. 'Lorna, the chances are small. You know that.'

'I know,' Lorna argued. 'But there's still a possibility.'

Kathryn sighed and got to her feet. 'Okay.' She crossed the room to the door before turning around. 'Just make sure you get some sleep.'

Lorna didn't know how she could after this.

* * *

**Kathryn**

The next morning, Lorna sought Kathryn out in the inn, brimming with news. From the dark purple bruises beneath her eyes, Kathryn knew she _hadn't_ slept at all, but she didn't say anything.

'It took a while, but I think I've put together what happened here. At least partially. There's still so much to read, but this is what I know: There were survivors of the Curse in this town. They've joined others in the mountains, in Tempest's Reach. Everyone left, except the man who kept the journal, old man Bradshaw. He noticed that the worgen attacks stopped all of a sudden and decided to venture into the Blackwald. There is an abandoned mill just northeast of town, it was where Bradshaw lived.' She stopped, still hugging the book to her chest. 'Kathryn, I still have a lot to look through, but . . . could you see if you can find any clues there?'

Kathryn absently scratched the back of her neck. 'I suppose I could.'

Almost brimming with child-like excitement, Lorna hugged her. 'Thank you!'

'Calm down, woman!' Kathryn laughed.

Lorna stopped and took a theatrically deep breath. 'Okay, okay. I'm calm.'

Kathryn didn't want to crush her hopes, but she knew the chances of Darius being alive were little to nothing. After seeing the hope on Lorna's face, she knew she had to help her somehow.

Kathryn ventured into the woods that she had gone into to kill the spider queen, and a short distance away from Stormglen she came across a ruined mill. The back wall had caved away entirely and supports were tumbling down. It was obviously long since abandoned.

She cautiously ventured inside, looking around at the ruin. There was something eerily different about this place, and she didn't like it one bit.

There was the sound of something light moving behind her, and Kathryn whirled. There was a tall, slender figure standing there, and on closer inspection Kathryn came to realise she was an elf. She had pale, lavender coloured skin, dark purple hair, and gold, flowing attire. But, despite these other factors, what unnerved Kathryn the most was her silver eyes.

'I've been expecting you, Kathryn,' she said. Her voice was somewhat musical, and beautiful in a strange way. 'Do not be alarmed.'

She stepped forward as though to prove she meant no harm.

'My name is Belrysa. I am a priestess of the moon . . . a night elf.'

_Night elf. _The race that had befriended her mother so long ago, and had presented her with the bracelet that now resided on Kathryn's wrist.

'You might not know my people, but the destinies of our two races have been linked since the Curse befell you.'

'No, I do. Know what you are, I mean,' Kathryn murmured. She raised her wrist to show Belrysa the band of gold. A small smile pulled at the corner of the elf's lips, and she nodded.

'You must have many questions, Kathryn. And they will be answered in time. I know why you're here and what you're looking for. I can't lead you there with the enemy tracking you.'

When Kathryn looked at her inquiringly for an explanation, Belrysa continued.

'One of Sylvanas's scouts has been following your tracks. You can't lead the Forsaken to the place you seek. Take this talisman and walk along the road just north of here.'

She held her hand out, and in her palm sat a coin-sized spiral crafted from silver. Tentatively, Kathryn took it.

'Let the ranger lure you to her trap and use the power of the talisman to break free and counterattack.'

Kathryn stepped back, nodding. Through the destroyed wall behind Belrysa, she could see the path running along lower ground. From what she remembered, there was a path she could take that would lead her right down there without it looking too suspicious.

She turned and exited the mill. While she was looping around to follow the road Belrysa had instructed, she wondered what sort of trap the scout had in mind. She hoped it wasn't _extremely _drastic, though knowing her luck, it probably was.

The path stretched out before her. If Kathryn hadn't known what was coming, she wouldn't have suspected a thing.

She took a step forward.

Then another.

Her ears pricked, and she could faintly hear something – the scout, no doubt. She looked around, seeking them out, taking another step.

That was when it happened. She was overcome by an extreme feeling of coldness, and her joints felt as though they were seizing up. She couldn't move, and it was incredibly painful. Kathryn growled and looked around.

The scout seemed to materialise out of nowhere, dressed in armour and a black hood. Pale ears poked from the top, revealing that she was an elf.

'Such easy prey,' she said lightly. 'Sylvanas will be most pleased.' Drawing an arrow from her quiver, she nocked it on her bowstring.

As the freezing pain started to overcome her body, Kathryn clenched the talisman has hard as she could, her nails digging into her palm and drawing blood while she did so.

The feeling of sudden warmth swept through Kathryn as she became able to control her limbs again. She staggered at this sudden ability, and the scout's glowing, red eyes widened.

'_How did you - ?_ It doesn't matter - I don't need a trap to defeat you.'

_Are you sure about that?_ Wordlessly Kathryn dove on the scout, sinking her fangs deep into her neck. The elf cried out in pain, lashing out and knocking her aside. Kathryn skidded backwards on all fours, then leapt again. This time she landed the killing blow, savagely tearing out the scout's throat in mere seconds. She dropped like a stone.

Just like that.

Kathryn stepped back, breathing heavily and waiting for her violent heart rate to slow down. When she turned, Belrysa was there.

'Well done,' she said softly. 'There are others like you, Kathryn. And they too, were lost and confused.'

'Feral, you mean,' Kathryn said. The night elf shook her head.

'There is a place where you belong. Tal'doren, the wild home, was once home to an order of druids who took the shape of wolves. It is there that you will find the answers you seek. It is also there that you will find someone who can offer guidance. An old friend.'

* * *

Tal'doren was deep within the woods, much further than the spider lair. By this point, Kathryn had made her way through colossal thorns jutting out of the ground, and past even larger trees than before.

But the size of those trees was nothing compared to what she was yet to see.

Down a slight slope, there was a gigantic tree that towered above all of the others. A constant stream of water seemed to be trailing in a small waterfall down one side, and near the top it appeared that night elven structures were once built into it. It was illuminated with blue light that seemed to spill out through lines in the bark. Down near the base, it seemed as though it had been lifted slightly off the ground, providing ample shelter underneath. Kathryn could see light and movement coming from it.

Tal'doren. This was where she belonged. Apparently.

Taking a deep breath and gathering all of her courage, Kathryn made her way down to it.

As she drew closer, she could now make out the shapes. Everyone there was worgen, but . . . like her. They weren't rampaging monsters. They held themselves upright like Kathryn did, and they seemed stable . . . like her.

Few times she was looked at twice when she entered the large, hollowed out area beneath the tree.

_This was where she belonged_.

There were so many of them. So, _so_ many. Kathryn's eyes wandered over them in an attempt to see if anyone she knew was there. She could see three night elves, but she hardly paid them any mind as she kept looking.

She sensed movement behind her and turned, finding herself face-to-torso with another worgen. Kathryn looked up. The worgen was extremely huge, dressed in armour, and wearing a patch over one eye. The other was a dark brown, and incredibly familiar. Realisation hit her like a ton of rocks as it suddenly dawned upon her.

She was looking into the very eye of Darius Crowley.

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**Last edited: 17/1/16  
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	16. Neither Human Nor Beast

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_**16 – Neither Human Nor Beast**_

**Kathryn**

At first her voice failed her. All she could think was _Lorna, Lorna, Lorna . . ._

But then, after a long moment, Kathryn spoke. 'Darius?'

He recognised her voice almost instantly. His eye widened in shock. 'You're all right, Kathryn!' He gave her a rough hug just like he always had when she was growing up – his way of being the father she never had. 'I've been waiting for this day for a long time.' There was a long period of comfortable silence, as he ruffled the top of her head. 'I-it truly is great to see you.'

'Same here,' Kathryn murmured. He pulled away and looked her straight in the eyes.

'I've heard of what you've done and I'm thankful . . . especially for Lorna - she's all I have left. I will send for her right away.'

'I know she missed you,' Kathryn said. 'She has been clinging onto this hope that you were still alive – I didn't believe it myself, and, well . . .'

Darius seemed to soften. 'Don't worry about it,' he said gruffly. 'Now, the night elves have taught us much during this time. They've taught us who we are and where we come from. Thanks to them . . . thanks to this place . . . we're no longer mere beasts. We have regained free will.'

He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly.

'The Forsaken aren't here for our land alone. They're looking for something we possess. An artefact capable of uncontrollably spreading the Curse to all humanity. We cannot let them find it. Sylvanas's banshees come very close. Help my trackers take them out.'

'Banshees?'

He put a clawed hand on her shoulder and led her to where she could see outside again.

'Look in the trees,' he said.

It took a lot of intense focus for Kathryn to finally realise what he was talking about. Flickering in and about the branches, silvery silhouettes were barely visible in the shadows of the forest.

'They're dead,' she finally said after a moment. 'And most likely brought back against their own will. It's not as if they have a choice.'

'But they are scouts all the same. We need to deal with them swiftly.'

She looked at him. 'But how? Wouldn't anything we throw against them simply pass through?'

Darius started to answer, but was interrupted as another worgen ran in, down on all fours. He skidded to a stop in front of the rebel lord, then straightened up.

'Darius! The Dark Rangers have the Scythe! They got to it before we were able to reach it.'

Darius' face tightened. 'Get our men in position immediately, Tobias. We _cannot_ let this fall into the hands of the Forsaken!'

Kathryn whirled to look at the other worgen. 'Tobias?'

He recognised her voice and looked at her in turn. 'Kathryn! Lorna, is she - ?'

'She's fine,' Kathryn interrupted. 'But you need to go.'

He turned back to Darius, a steely expression on his face. 'It will be done!' He dropped back down and sprinted out of the haven.

'Ever since the Forsaken invaded Gilneas, we've tried to keep the location of the Scythe of Elune secret,' Darius said gravely. 'We moved it at night to one of many safe locations. The Dark Rangers got close, but never found it . . . until now. They were last spotted at a cabin west of here. Blow this horn when you find them and Tobias and his trackers will engage the Dark Rangers. Only then will it be safe for you to venture inside the cabin and take back the scythe.'

He pressed a long animal horn into her hands. She wouldn't have been able to tell what it had formerly belonged to, but that didn't matter at the moment.

'Hurry, Kathryn. It must not reach Sylvanas.'

Kathryn turned and ran after Tobias.

* * *

Still deep within the forest, Kathryn came out to a clearing where there was a small house on its own, completely surrounded by numerous Dark Rangers on guard. In regards to getting here, Kathryn had completely ignored the banshees, as they were no longer important. She stopped right at the edge of the trees, then raised the horn to her lips.

A deep, lingering rumble came from it, echoing through the trees and continuing for a few seconds after Kathryn stopped blowing.

A roar came from another part of the Blackwald nearby. 'Keep them occupied, my brothers! Allow Kathryn to retrieve the scythe!' A flood of sturdy, male worgen spilled out of the trees and ran straight for the Rangers, their sole mission to keep them occupied.

When battle ensued, Kathryn darted from her place in the trees and sprinted as fast as she could up the stairs of the cabin and burst inside. She dove on the single Ranger inside and killed her before the other woman could process what had happened, and pried open a worn, wooden box sitting on a table at the opposite end of the room. A painfully bright glow started to come from it as she lifted the lid, so, knowing very well this was what they were looking for, Kathryn tucked the box under her arm and ran back outside again.

Tobias, who was leading the attack, called out to the worgen again. 'Fall back! Retreat into the woods!'

And, however grudgingly, retreat they did.

* * *

'I knew we could count on you,' Darius said. 'You've done well, Kathryn.'

One of the night elves approached them; one with pale purple skin and green hair. She had jagged shaped markings on her cheeks, and Kathryn was clueless to what they might be supposed to represent.

'What you know as the Curse began as a heresy among our brethren,' she said. 'Faced with a losing battle against demonic forces, the Druids of the Pack eschewed the balance they were sworn to and allowed the beast to overtake them. They were banished to the Emerald Dream where they live in eternal slumber under a tree identical to this one, but not before their curse spread to others.'

She turned slightly to gesture to the other two of her kin, who were on the other side of the room, standing near three silvery basins that appeared to be emitting a blue light.

'Today our ceremony will restore balance to your people. Bring me the leaf that grows only in Tal'doren's vicinity.

Kathryn paused. 'Wait. How do I - ?'

'You will know,' she replied simply, already knowing what Kathryn was going to ask.

'I . . . okay.'

With a feeling of uncertainty, Kathryn backed out of Tal'doren. What did this mean? "Restore balance?" Did that mean . . . would she become human again?

Well, no. Most likely not. Darius was already stable, so that must mean . . . maybe she wouldn't have to rely on Krennan's potion anymore. Maybe she would have permanent control.

Kathryn was drawn to a plant that almost seemed to be glowing, out near the roots of a tree. She knelt down and plucked a leaf, holding it carefully between her first two fingers. She hadn't seen anything like it before. This had to be what she was looking for.

Kathryn picked several more of those leaves and made her way back to the gargantuan tree.

'These simple leaves grow by Elune's grace,' the elf said as she accepted the glowing plant. 'They will help your mind understand the need for balance and your soul will permanently earn mastery over the beast.'

_Permanently earn mastery over the beast_. That was it. That was what she was looking for.

Darius moved behind Kathryn and clapped a huge hand on her small shoulder. 'It is time, Kathryn. This . . . alchemy that has kept the beast inside you at bay will not last for long.'

Kathryn turned so she was properly looking at him.

'The first cursed worgen were night elf druids much like our new allies,' he continued. 'They, however, abandoned the balance that the rest of their kind embraced and allowed the beast to take over their minds. It is only fitting that their brethren be the ones that deliver us from the Curse. Go, girl. Drink from the waters of Tal'doren and make peace with yourself.'

The elf held out a hand which Kathryn tentatively accepted. She led her over to the first of the three wells, where a male night elf was already standing. She left her there and walked to stand behind the middle well.

'Drink,' he said, gesturing to the liquid inside. It was clear, and seemed to ripple even though nothing was touching it.

Kathryn cupped her hands together and scooped up a handful of the water, quickly downing it as not to waste anything. It had the same feeling as drinking cold water first thing in the morning after several hours of sleep. She could feel it move down her throat.

'Just as Goldrinn's spirit once blessed our druids,' he called in his deep, rumbling voice, 'let Kathryn be blessed with the wisdom of his race and the ferocity of the wolf god.'

Kathryn staggered suddenly something seemed to pull at her chest. Then it was gone as suddenly as it had come, before she could even decide on what it was. A thin beam of light looked as though it had come from the heavens itself as it reached down to touch the water.

Kathryn cautiously moved to the second well, where the female elf was standing. With a small smile, she also instructed Kathryn to drink from it.

'Just as Dral'nir soothes the cursed druids who gave into the beast and abandoned balance, let Tal'doren soothe Kathryn.'

This time, Kathryn did not feel something in her chest, but was instead filled with a sense of calmness that only the well seemed to be able to explain. As it had with the previous well, another line of light ran directly down to the water.

Another male stood behind the last well. As Kathryn drunk the water, he also spoke.

'Let the Scythe unbind that which was not meant to be bound! Let the soul master the beast, lest the beast master the soul!'

Kathryn did not expect pain to come from this. A war within the very depths of her skull seemed to be building up as the twinge in her chest suddenly reappeared, turning into a full-blown throb. Her head was becoming heavier as the pounding became more intense, and Kathryn felt as though she had when she had transformed the first time. With a cry, she slipped to the floor, her knees and palms making contact with the ground. The pain was spreading to everywhere that it could now, down her legs and into the tips of her fingers.

But it was a lot quicker than the first time. Less than ten seconds had passed before it all disappeared again, and Kathryn was left, shaking on the ground.

She drew in an unstable breath. And then another.

She was still okay.

But all the same, she didn't dare open her eyes. She had no idea what she would find.

Then someone was there, pulling her up by the hands. Darius.

'It is done then, Kathryn,' he murmured. 'You are one of us now.'

'I . . . I . . .' Kathryn put her fingers against her left temple.

Wait . . . there was no claw digging into her head, as she expected there would be. And she couldn't feel any fur . . .

Kathryn's eyes snapped open, and there it was. Her hand. Her _human_ hand.

She gasped and stumbled back as a lock of tangled, golden-brown hair tumbled into her face. She caught it between her fingers, and took it in, not breathing.

She was bare footed, and completely covered in all sorts of dirt and grime, but she didn't care. She put both of her hands to her face, touching all of her features – no snout, no long ears, smaller, normal shaped eyes . . .

'I'm _cured_,' she whispered. '_Completely cured!_'

'Not completely,' Darius said. She looked up at him. 'When faced with battle, you will become beast again. Afterwards you can remain that way unless you choose otherwise. If that is the case, given enough focus and strong will, you will revert to your human form. However, the wolf will always be inside of you.'

Kathryn could feel her eyes glossing over, but she really didn't care. She didn't _bloody care_ if there was still worgen in her – she was human again. She flung herself at Darius, hugging him tightly around the middle. He let out an _oomph_ at her initial impact, but then laughed slightly and patted her on the head.

She broke away after a minute. 'Thank you. _Thank you_.'

There was commotion at the entry to the tree, before two human shapes burst in. Lorna and Godfrey.

Lorna halted abruptly, looking at the scene before her. '_Father!_'

Darius whirled to see her. 'Lorna!'

Lorna sprinted forward and barrelled into Darius just as Kathryn had done, but sobbing a lot more. 'Thank the Light,' she kept whispering, choking out sobs in between words. 'Thank the Light . . .'

Godfrey stormed forward, an ugly glare on his face. 'Crowley! You and your elven allies are hereby ordered to serve along the king's army. Cursed or not, you are still bound by Gilnean law!'

Darius paid him no heed as Genn Greymane himself entered. By the look in his eyes, Kathryn knew that he recognised Darius. Lorna looked up from her father and spotted Kathryn for the first time. Her eyes widened in shock.

'You're human!' she whispered.

Kathryn nodded, but was more focused on what was happening in regards to Greymane and Darius. She held her breath as though she were waiting for a bomb to go off.

'Does this toad speak for you, Genn?' Darius shouted, fury visible on every feature of his face. 'Do you come to our dwelling as a friend? Or do you come as a _tyrant_?'

'No, old friend,' Greymane replied. 'I've come to you as an equal.'

His face tightened in pain as his skin started shifting and rippling like hot wax, and as his bones shifted about. Fur started growing at an alarming rate, and before anyone could process what had happened, there was a worgen standing in the king's place.

Godfrey took it the worst out of all of them. 'Impossible!' he shouted, looking enraged.

Once again, his comment went ignored.

'Aye, Genn,' Darius said. 'It is not law that binds us. It is something far stronger. My men are ready to give their lives under your command.'

'It is decided, then,' Greymane replied. 'We will unite all Gilneans and drive the Forsaken from our lands.'

* * *

**Liam**

She should have returned by now. Liam knew that. All Lorna had said she was doing was searching an old mill for clues. Something like that didn't take two hours.

He was worried.

'Damn it, Kathryn,' he muttered, looking into the forest from over the low, stone wall that ran along the forest side of Stormglen. 'Where are you?'

There was the creaking sound of an old window opening, and Gwen poked her head out of the inn. 'She still not back yet?'

Liam shook his head.

'Hmm. Well, come in and eat something soon. No point in going hungry yourself if she's not going to turn up for a while.' She disappeared back into the depths of the building.

Liam exhaled slowly and turned away from the forest, crossing the road to the other side of the one-street town to look out at the vast expanse of ocean. At the rate everything was breaking, soon there would be no Gilneas left at all. He didn't want to imagine what that would be like. Gilneas was his homeland, and he had lived here his entire life. He wasn't going to give it up.

'Liam!'

He grinned. He would know that voice anywhere. At least she was safe. That was a good thing.

He turned around to the almost empty street that only had a few people strewn along it, his eyes searching for a worgen.

Liam blinked in confusion. Where was she? Out of there corner of his eye, there was someone with golden-brown hair that seemed to be waving furiously and bouncing around like a maniac, but other than that . . .

Wait.

She rammed into him just as the craziest idea occurred to him.

'Kathryn!'

That beautiful face he still remembered grinned up at him. His jaw dropped.

'You're cured!'

'Partially,' she replied, though that didn't seem to dull her mood.

Liam's face split into a grin, and he hugged her tightly. 'Kathryn Weiss, you are a _miracle_ woman.'

And then he did the most insane thing he possibly could have.

He kissed her.

* * *

**scREAM!**

**About bloody time. Now _this_ *gestures wildly at chapter* ladies and gentlemen, I reckon deserves a review, no?**

* * *

**Last edited: 17/1/16  
**


	17. Hopeless Case

**There's just something I want to inquire - what's your favourite race in the WoW franchise? And class too, for that matter.  
****I'd have to say blood elf, even though I adore the goblin and worgen starting experience. And I suppose you'd think rogue is my favourite class, but it's actually hunter. I've only been using rogue for the past two stories because the small quests that involve the trainer towards the start are always mildly entertaining.**

**Cheers!**

**~Ice.**

* * *

_**17 – Hopeless Case**_

**Kathryn**

_Stupid personal denial. No wonder she hadn't seen it coming_.

Anyone who knew Kathryn would expect a certain reaction in situations like this: that she would knee him where it hurts, swear a lot, and then take off.

Kathryn did none of those things.

Liam had both of his hands framing her jaw, so she couldn't have run even if she had wanted to (she didn't. She _really_ didn't) and besides . . . she liked it.

Cue the gasping. Kathryn liked being kissed by Liam Greymane.

At some point, Kathryn had unconsciously threaded her arms around the back of his neck, her fingers absently playing with his hair.

What did she mean by personal denial? Oh, you know, the whole: 'I'm a _worgen_, how could anyone like me?' and 'I'm a complete cow, so nobody _does_ like me,' business.

This had just been sitting under her nose the whole time, hadn't it?

Well, he still smelled nice. That was a plus. And he was a good kisser, too.

And . . . well . . .

Maybe she really did like him in that sense. A lot.

And maybe she kissed him back a bit.

. . .

Scratch that, a _lot_.

What? She was a hormonal woman who had her needs. She was allowed to do that, wasn't she?

Light, her thoughts were ridiculously jumbled right now. She was surprised she was stringing together coherent ideas and miniature philosophies without too much confusion. Oh well, that probably had to be expected when one was being snogged.

It seemed that forever had passed until he finally broke off, those hazel eyes surveying her as though he expected her to thrash him. And he obviously seemed a little confused that she hadn't yet.

'That was a nice "welcome back" present,' she finally whispered.

'Oh?' he murmured back.

And because she could, Kathryn kissed him again.

He made a noise and picked her up, his arms around her waist.

'I'm just going to pretend I didn't see that.'

They both jumped in surprise, and Kathryn tightened her grip around Liam's shoulders to avoid getting dropped. When he set her down, she turned to see Gwen, leaning up against the side of the inn and smirking.

'Thanks for the show,' she said. 'If only Lorna was here to see this.'

She laughed as Kathryn flushed bright red, then stepped forward to pull her into a hug. 'And how long have you been like this?' she asked.

'About twenty minutes,' Kathryn replied.

'And you decided that you'd rather track down your man and give him a nice snog instead of telling me first?'

The heat was refusing to leave Kathryn's face. 'That wasn't supposed to happen,' she muttered. Gwen only laughed again. 'Go right ahead, just not somewhere public. You two are nauseating.'

Liam, as it turned out, wasn't fazed at all. He went right along with her, while Kathryn continued to resemble a tomato.

'If you say so, Miss Armstead,' he said, laughing. Kathryn punched him in the arm and he gave a yelp of indignation.

'What was that for?'

'Jackass.'

He grinned. 'You weren't saying that thirty seconds ago.'

'Yeah, well, I might have just changed my mind. You aren't worth my time after all.'

The entertained look never left his face. Was he _ever_ lost for words? 'Tell yourself that all you want.'

'Get a room,' Gwen said, shaking her head with an exasperated sigh. And with that final comment, she turned and disappeared back into the inn.

Kathryn folded her arms. 'Well. It seems that given the right circumstances, you immediately turn into a cocky git. Big shocker there.'

He just grinned again. 'Come here, you.'

* * *

Time had a nasty habit of disappearing. Just like that.

Maybe it generally came down to how effectively that said time was spent, but . . .

Oops?

Before Kathryn knew it, the entire day had gone and the sun had long since set. The Forsaken evidently hadn't caught up with them, and the survivors were safe for another night. Hopefully. Though there was something nagging at the back of her mind that she was supposed to tell Gwen – she'd had full intentions to do so immediately before Liam and his fantastic snogging skills came into the picture.

But why did she have to _forget_ what it was?

She sighed slightly. She would have to deal with that in the morning. Instead, she buried her face into the crook of Liam's neck and tried to go to sleep, but she just couldn't. Kathryn had the feeling that it was going to keep her up all night, irritating her.

Damn it.

She must have involuntarily sighed again, because Liam shifted slightly in the bedroll they were sharing and a hand came to rest on her waist. She watched him for a few minutes.

It certainly was true when it was said that one looks younger when they are asleep. His face was unflawed save the bruise above his eye and his features were devoid of most emotion, leaving him looking peaceful. Only then did Kathryn realise that he must have been under a lot of stress recently – the worgen attacks several months ago, Kathryn going missing, and the turning up for him to find her a worgen, the pressing attack of the Forsaken, and all of the little details in between.

A sad smile tugged at the corners of her lips. Royals had to grow up too fast. That was something no one should have to do. At least Kathryn had chosen to live out her childhood as she did; she doubted Liam had been given such opportunities. And now, there was the threat of his land being taken away from him . . .

Her hand went to his and she intertwined their fingers, brushing her thumb along the scars achieved from years of sword practice. His hands were rough and calloused, but she knew they were where hers belonged.

If they ever made it out of this mess.

'You awake?'

Kathryn shifted her head to look up at him. 'Mmm.'

He raised an eyebrow slightly. 'Why?'

'I've always had issues with sleeping. I'm just like that.'

'How do you survive?'

'I'm not sure.'

He laughed quietly. 'I guess I've always known you were a hopeless case.'

'Yet you kissed me anyway.'

He smiled slightly. 'It's endearing.'

Kathryn chewed her lip thoughtfully. 'That's not a word I'd generally use to describe myself.'

'And I doubt most could see it, either.'

She looked at him pointedly. 'What's that supposed to mean?'

He shook his head, grinning. 'Don't worry.'

There was a moment of silence before he spoke again. 'Have you seen Lorna again since this morning?'

Kathryn felt herself stiffen slightly. _Oh_. 'Why?' she asked slowly, eyes slightly narrowed.

'I hadn't seen her, that's all.'

Kathryn mulled this thought over in her head for a good while before speaking again. 'Look, if there's anything between you two, I'm not going to get in the way.' She shot him a pointed look and made to sit up.

'Wait.' Liam grabbed her by the wrist and looked at her confusedly. '_What?_'

'I've seen you together, and I guess you've known her longer, too, so -'

'Hold up,' Liam said. He shot her a stern look. 'Kathryn, you're getting yourself worked up over nothing. Lorna and I are just friends.'

Kathryn blinked. 'But -'

'When you, Crowley and that gang of rebels went into the cathedral that day, Lorna lost the three most important people in her life. I was the only person there for her during that time, and even then, she wouldn't let me see her very often.'

Kathryn frowned. 'Who's the third?'

'You know Tobias Mistmantle?'

She raised her eyebrows and looked at him, shocked. '_Tobias?_'

'Tobias,' he confirmed. 'She said he'd started seeing her just before the attacks broke out.'

Kathryn paused. 'But she never told _me_ that . . .'

'She was going to, when all of that mess was sorted out. But, as we both know, you were believed to be dead before she could do so.'

He sighed slightly. 'She spent months living with a shadow of death hanging over her. You, Tobias and her father . . . it was becoming too much for her. Who knows what might have happened had I not talked some sense into her.'

There was another moment of silence before he spoke again. 'I had to give her hope that her father was still alive. I couldn't use you, because I believed you to be dead myself, and I don't really know Tobias . . .'

Kathryn frowned. 'How on earth did you convince her?'

He grimaced. 'Worgen tidy up after themselves. And I reckon Darius was too big for them to cart off, so I told her that he could have been able to make it out, however wounded.'

'So you installed false hope within her?'

He paused, then looked at her with a strange look on his face. 'Not necessarily false. That possibility I told her about held some promise.'

'Then, if Darius could have lived, why not Tobias and I?'

'You're too small – not even a mouthful. And Tobias, he's got some build to him, but few men tower as much as Crowley.'

'And I thought it was just my perspective from the ground,' Kathryn muttered. Liam shook his head.

'No, that man's a giant, I swear.'

She looked at him. 'You do know Darius is alive, don't you?'

He paused. 'What?'

'He is alive. And Lorna knows. She was with me.'

'Where?'

There is a place in the woods called . . . Tal'doren, I think. He . . . he's a worgen. Like me. Tobias is, too.'

His eyes scanned over her face. 'Are they . . . are they - ?'

'They're like me,' she said, answering his unasked question. 'I swear there are hundreds of them - _just like me_.'

'I . . .'

'But there's one more thing,' she whispered.

He narrowed his eyes at her drop in tone. 'What?'

'So is your father.'

He froze, the expression on his face unreadable. Kathryn's heart was pounded as she waited for his reaction.

After a long moment, it finally came. '_What?_'

'He -'

'No, I know what you said.' He waved her off. 'But how do you know?'

'He went and proved it in front of all of us. And Godfrey, too.'

'So you know now?'

'You already knew?'

He paused, then nodded.

'But – but he had control!' Kathryn found herself going wide-eyed as she hissed that sentence. That made no sense . . .

'Shh. I'll give you a full explanation.' As though to reassure her, he gave her hand a gentle squeeze.

'You better,' she said, her voice low and full of venom.

'We think he was bitten only recently, but we can't be sure, because he wouldn't tell us. But I thought it was a lucky escape that he had control over his other form, and was able to switch between them. I thought something must have interfered, preventing a full transformation.'

'But why didn't you tell me? We might have found a way to get me out of this mess sooner!'

He shook his head. 'I didn't want to get your hopes up. But now I realise, he must have gone to this Tal'doren place and gotten help. He must have.'

Kathryn shook her head. 'No, because Darius didn't know that he was one of us too.'

He chewed his bottom lip, thinking over that concept. 'Were there only worgen there? Or did some other race help?'

'There were night elves,' she murmured.

'That must be it, then. The night elves.'

She nodded. 'I guess so.'

He sighed. 'We'll talk about this again in the morning, okay? Just go to sleep now.'

'I'll try.'

He kissed her forehead, and Kathryn then deemed it appropriate to snuggle back into him. 'No, you will.'

* * *

**Just a bucketful of fluff, really.  
**

**Do make sure to review, kay? Tell me about your preferences with races and classes.**

* * *

**17/1/16**


	18. Liberation Day

**We're getting close now. ****  
**

**Cheers!**

**~Ice.**

* * *

_**18 – Liberation Day**_

**Kathryn**

Less than three hours later, Kathryn was awake again and swearing vehemently under her breath. Before she had even gotten out the seventh cuss, Liam was awake too, staring at her with raised eyebrows.

'Crap,' she finished lamely.

'What now?' he asked tiredly.

'I was supposed to tell Gwen something,' she muttered.

'Right then.' He got up, and hauled Kathryn to her feet. 'Let's go.'

She groaned. 'It better not be too late.'

'I doubt it. At least you remembered. What time is it?'

'Dawn.'

'That's not too bad. Come on.'

A handful of seconds later they were at the bottom of the stairs and out the door. As it turned out, Gwen was already awake and out with the horses. She turned at their approach.

'I meant to tell you,' Kathryn said. 'Darius said it was safe to go through the Blackwald to Tempest's Reach.'

Gwen nodded. 'I know. King Greymane gave me a brief rundown of the plan before he set off.' She stopped and pulled a face. 'Doesn't make it sound any less crazy. But I will do as Darius asked and have our people move through the Blackwald. The king said that he and Krennan would go into Tempest's Reach after Lord Godfrey confirmed survivors had made their dwelling there. I asked Krennan to wait for you at the bridge before Tempest's Reach.'

'I'll come too,' Liam said. Gwen shook her head.

'No, I need your help here. Besides, I can't trust you two not to get distracted anymore.'

'Will you cut that out?' Kathryn snapped, going red again. Gwen just laughed as her prod hit its desired mark.

'Fine. But get going.'

* * *

Kathryn had expected a few things when she arrived at the stone bridge before Tempest's Reach. But this wasn't it.

Krennan Aranas was kneeling on the ground – alone. He had evidently been beaten to some extent, because the damage proved that much. Kathryn instantly dropped down beside him to help the shaking man to his feet. It took him a moment to realise she was there.

'Kathryn!' he cried hoarsely. 'Genn . . . they've taken Genn . . . they've taken . . . our king!'

Kathryn felt herself pale. 'What?'

'Lord Godfrey, he managed to convince two of the eastern lords to go with his plan. The fool seems to think he can strike a deal with the Forsaken by turning Greymane over to them.'

'Damn it,' Kathryn muttered.

'Listen carefully,' Krennan said, apparently starting to recover. 'We need to resolve this with as little bloodshed as possible.'

He started fishing inside the pocket of his cloak, before withdrawing a vial containing a grey substance. He passed it to her.

'This potion will allow you to sneak in undetected. We need you to assassinate the traitorous lords before this gets out of hand.'

She cocked an eyebrow. 'What about the bloodshed bit?'

'This is necessary. We are keeping this to a minimum. So no . . . trigger happy slaughter.'

Kathryn put on her best offended face, not sure what to think of that statement. 'I am _not_ trigger happy!'

He shook his head. 'It doesn't matter right now. Just do what I'm asking, please.'

She uncorked the vial and sniffed it. 'Alright, fine. But what if I find Greymane?'

'After you have dealt with the lords, Godfrey then should be outnumbered and he won't have any form of power over him.'

'Right.'

* * *

There were two sections of land on the other side of the bridge, separated by a rift between them. At the bottom of the said rift, there was water brought in from the ocean. Right before the first chunk curved away out of sight, there was a stone bridge that led over to the second.

On the first chunk, there were a few houses surrounded by a low, stone wall. The path that led from the bridge Kathryn just came off went straight past them, and seemed to curve all the way around to a building on a higher slope on the far side of those houses. From the noises she could hear, there were people there. Wrinkling her nose, she took a gulp of the potion.

Kathryn raised her hand, but wasn't all that surprised when she didn't see anything. Krennan was a pretty reliable alchemist – if he said it made you invisible, it made you invisible. Besides, he could cure a drunk Liam. If he could do that, he could do anything.

But it was purely out of habit that Kathryn ducked low and crept alongside the wall. You could never be too careful, after all.

The voices quietened, and Kathryn felt she could spare a look over the wall. The first thing she saw was a wagon, but past that, there were people. And not _just_ people. Godfrey and Greymane, to be specific. They seemed to be involved in some sort of silent, but intense argument.

A cobblestone that Kathryn was holding on to suddenly slipped loose and clattered to the ground. She impulsively let out a small 'eep!', and ducked down just as Godfrey looked her way. On hands and knees, she scurried further down the path towards the second bridge before he had the cause to investigate.  
Kathryn had a good feeling about the building behind the cluster of houses, and found it convenient that the path curved around to there. She was running now – there was no one in her direct line of sight to notice until she got there, and it was then that she slowed down. Two guards were stationed outside the two storey house, and Kathryn knew she would have a job getting in there.

She scaled the entire building, which was completely closed up save for a single window on the second floor.

It was her only option.

Kathryn jumped up and got a firm grip on the gutter, before swinging back and forth. When the momentum finally carried her high enough, she wedged a foot in the sill, before also quickly grabbing onto it with her hands. With a powerful heave, she tumbled into the room.

She was in the hallway, and a staircase led downstairs. Judging by the footsteps she could hear, that was where she needed to be.

She edged her way along the banister, and a man came into view. Kathryn's hand lingered on the knife she had obtained from Stormglen.

He never saw it coming.

Kathryn pounced and her knife sunk deep into his back. The lord was dead before he even knew it.

But this was where Kathryn was also taken by surprise. She also dropped as a wave of pain washed over her. She felt the now-familiar sensation of her bones rearranging themselves, but it wasn't as intense as it had been the other times. It seemed that her body was getting used to it.

When it finally stopped, she was crumpled on the ground and breathing heavily. But she didn't need to see herself to know what had happened.

The beast was back.

* * *

Kathryn emerged from the second house on the other side of Tempest's Reach after swiftly assassinating the other lord. She had accepted her transformation right upon realising it – she was grateful to even have the ability to switch between forms. She wasn't going to complain.

Now she was making a beeline straight for where Greymane and Godfrey had been before.

She crossed the second stone bridge – still invisible as far as she was aware, but she was fairly certain that the effects would wear off any second. There was a guard patrolling with his mastiff, and Kathryn eyed the dog warily as she approached. It _shouldn't_ notice her . . .

But it did. The animal sniffed the air, and the next second it was galloping after her as she screamed and ran. She leapt over the stone wall in one go and pulled up short beside Greymane, who, judging by the way he was looking at her, could see her. The potion had worn off.

As she attempted to steady her breathing, Kathryn concentrated intently and winced as she felt the change overcome her again. She wanted to stay human as much as possible, and the more she fought, the more she would have to change back and forth.

'Your Highness,' Kathryn gasped, still slightly winded from her run. Godfrey seemed to have just realised what was going on, and ran from the other side of the square. 'Eastern lords – they're dead.'

Genn just nodded. 'I wish it could've been avoided, Kathryn. Let us ensure this is resolved without further bloodshed.'

She nodded, finally managing to steady her racing heart. Bloody hell, that was a fast dog. But evidently upon her becoming visible, the animal had lost interest and disappeared.

Greymane straightened up and looked Godfrey in the eye. When he was angry, he actually had a rather terrifying aura around him. 'It's over Godfrey. You have no support left among the eastern lords.'

A flicker of shock passed over Godfrey's face. 'No . . .' Then he composed himself. 'I'd sooner die than have one of your kind for a king!'

He turned and ran for the rift between the two parts of the settlement. Then, before Kathryn could register what was going to happen, he had flung himself off the edge.

Lord Godfrey would rather commit suicide than have a worgen as his ruler.

'The idiot!' she cried. He was obviously dead - there was no way he could have survived that.

'That man has always been a fool, despite his status,' Greymane said gravely. He watched the ledge for a long moment, his face impassive, before he turned to regard Kathryn. 'I thank you, Kathryn. We can't rest on our laurels, however.'

'What?'

'We found out about a mining town, currently under Forsaken occupation. We sent some of my men, along with Crowley's daughter to the nearby livery stables to begin operations there. Liam should be joining them shortly. I'll stay here and organize the final push for Gilneas City.'

* * *

Kathryn slid off a horse on the eastern side of Gilneas City at the livery stables. There was a gathering of people there – some who were evidently Darius' men, and others who were dressed in sooty, bloodstained and torn clothing.

'Kathryn!'

Lorna appeared from amidst the people with a man at her side, looking more than glad to see her. 'We're surrounded by Forsaken on all sides and can use all the help we can get.'

'All sides?' Kathryn repeated. Lorna nodded.

'We recently found out that the villagers at Emberstone survived most of the ravages of the Curse. Unfortunately their village wasn't as fortunate when it came to the Forsaken invasion. The Forsaken have taken the villagers prisoner and are forcing them to work the nearby mine as slaves.'

The man who was with her nodded and spoke up. He was sporting a nasty, infected looking weal on his cheek, and didn't look like he was in the best state of health. 'I was one of the few that escaped, Kathryn. When the Forsaken took over our town and mine, they treated us with utmost cruelty. Those of us who were weak and could not endure hard labour were worked to death by the abomination known as Brothogg.' He stopped and drew a breath, looking anguished. 'My wife was among his victims, and I swore that one day her death would be avenged. I am too frail now, but you can deliver justice . . . for us all.'

Kathryn took him by the wrist and looked him straight in the eyes. 'You have my word that I'll give that undead bastard what he deserves. My _word_.'

'Thank you,' he whispered, and Kathryn could see all of the pain that was pent up inside of him. Yes, she knew of loss, but her mother had died of a fever. She wasn't killed by anyone. What this man was going through was something else entirely.

Kathryn felt that if she had to go through something like that, she might not be able to cope.

The Emberstone mine was to the east of the livery stables, with Forsaken guards clearly on patrol both outside and inside.

Kathryn spent almost an entire day in there.

As she had discovered, the guards were carrying keys that were able to unlock the iron balls chained to the prisoners' ankles. In reality she only needed one key, but Kathryn made a point to brutally savage every one of the skeleton men she saw. Their entire race deserved to burn in their own personal hell. They may not have had a choice in regards to being undead, but they were certainly in control of their nature. She had no sympathy.

What Kathryn hated most was the intense stench of death the mine reeked of. And she knew it wasn't only the Forsaken. Who knew how many would have died under the eye of that abomination.

The thought of it made her hate them even more.

Those who were still alive were mining under the watchful eye of the patrol. That didn't last long when the skeletons' heads were suddenly ripped from their spiny necks and tossed carelessly into a cart filled with coal.

Kathryn went through the entire mine doing this. She wasn't leaving anyone behind.

The mine system finally opened up into a huge, open cavern, full of labourers and slave masters alike. And at the back wall was Brothogg.

Like every abomination, he was a horrible sight to behold. Guts partially spilling out of a line in his stomach, his skin varying colours, as they had once belonged to other races before they were stitched together, and menacing looking chains coiled around his fat wrists.

Since she had long since given up on changing back and forth between forms as of right now, the heightened sense of smell Kathryn had in worgen form just made him smell even worse. She very nearly threw up as her eyes started watering. She had no idea how long ago that monstrosity would have started rotting, but she had a feeling it had been quite a while.

Right. She would have to take out the head of the problem before dealing with the limbs.

And she did just that.

Kathryn skirted around the outside of the room, keeping low and ducking behind objects when necessary. Once she was nearing the back of the room, she kept even closer to the ground, tensed and prepared to spring. When she did, that ghastly being was dead within seconds. Kathryn dug her claws deep into Brothogg's back, pulling out all of the organs that resided there before targeting his head, ripping it off with a nauseating tearing sound.

The only problem was that everyone in the cavern was suddenly alerted to her presence.

Now she had a real battle on her hands.

Kathryn smashed and sliced her way through the horde of skeletons, crushing skulls and snapping bones. Whenever a blade came into contact with her own skin she hardly noticed, pressing further into the crowd and leaving a trail of death behind her. In less than a minute there was utter silence, and the only beings remaining were the enslaved citizens.

* * *

'The people are free, but the town is still occupied by the Forsaken,' Lorna said. 'They're cut off from their main force, so if we're to drive them out, now's our chance. Their leader, Executor Cornell, is known for his unbound ruthlessness. Also among them is Valnov the Mad, a so-called scientist who carries out inhuman experiments on the villagers too old to work the mines. We're going to take care of them all.'

'Sounds like a plan,' Kathryn replied.

Lorna nodded.

* * *

Emberstone Village was your standard village, save the fact that it was overrun by Forsaken. And the fact that this "scientist" guy looked absolutely nuts.

Because Kathryn and Lorna worked well together as a cohesive unit, they had cleared out the small settlement of skeletons in under fifteen minutes. Before they knew it, they were back at the stables, and the sun was starting to set.

The next meal then became the pressing issue. At the request of a lady named Magda Whitewall, Kathryn killed a few of the nearby stags and helped skin them for a stew to be distributed among those who were there. Magda had told Kathryn that she knew that this would be the last meal for many, and because of that she was going to make it their best. Kathryn wondered if it would be her last, too. Tomorrow, they would battle for Gilneas.

So she had helped Magda prepare and distribute the meal among the men and women. Already there had been armour and weapons brought in from nearby rebel safe houses, though there was a grim cloud hanging above them all. The Forsaken were better equipped, trained, and had larger numbers. For every time one of their own fell, the Forsaken's ranks would be bolstered. Most of the Gilnean population fighting in this battle were mere townsfolk – not warriors. Not many of them actually were. Their numbers had been damaged enough with the worgen attacks all those months ago, and before there had been time to recover, there was now this.

Kathryn sat on the ground with her back against a post, staring at the dirt by her bare feet. The commotion around her had been reduced to a dull hum in the back of her mind as she thought about this.

Her worst fear was that if she died, she would be raised to fight against those she loved – against Liam. The actual dying part she wasn't worried about. She just didn't want to become one of those monstrosities she hated so. If she died, she wanted to stay dead.

She jumped slightly as she felt an arm slide around her shoulders, and she looked up to see Liam scanning over her, looking concerned. But he didn't say anything, so she rested her head on his shoulder and he pulled her into his side.

'We'll make it through this,' he finally said. 'Some way or another, we will make it though. I promise you.'

Kathryn nodded. She didn't need to object, because she believed him.

When he tilted her head up to kiss her, she knew why she believed him. It was because she trusted him. More than almost anything in the world. And in that moment, a single sentence formed in her mind.

_I think I've fallen in love with you._

* * *

**Review!**

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**Last edited: 17/1/16  
**


	19. The Battle for Gilneas City

**So here it is. The battle.  
**

**Make sure to review.**

* * *

_**19 - The Battle for Gilneas City**_

**Kathryn**

If there had ever been a longer night, Kathryn couldn't remember it. She didn't even bother trying to sleep – fatigue was the last thing on her mind.

Liam didn't sleep either, and if he was worried, he was doing his best not to show it. But she thought he had every right to be. _Everything_ was hinged on the victory of this battle. Kathryn herself didn't know what to think at all. She wasn't afraid, but she knew she wouldn't know what to think if they lost.

In a few hours, everything she had might be gone.

Though to be honest, what she _did_ have wasn't much, but it meant a lot to her. Fewer items of higher value, so to speak, all in the form of people.

They spent the entire night talking in quiet murmurs, exchanging some of their most personal details but not voicing their concerns regarding the impending battle. Neither of them wanted to talk about it right then. They wanted to make the most of their last hours of peace before the battle.

When dawn broke however, they were both pulled from this state of mild comfort and had to return to brutal reality – this was actually happening. Many were going to die today.

* * *

**Liam**

As the sunlight finally started to spill across the grass, Liam and Kathryn both rose and began the distribution of the weaponry. Armour however, was a lot more limited. The rebels weren't really thinking of that when they were stocking their safehouses.

Forces from all over Gilneas were now meeting at this point, however these were only half of them. The king, and Lorna's father, Crowley, were leading another assault on some of the other districts within the city. Hordes of able-bodied men, and women who insisted they were capable of fighting were preparing for what was to come. The women were being permitted to fight, because judging by what Gilneas was going to face, they needed all of the help they could get.

He and Kathryn crossed paths during their distribution rounds, and she asked him when they were going to leave.

'Soon,' he replied, and though she was obviously trying to hide it, he could see the anxiety in her eyes. What shone through however, was the grim determination in every feature of her face. 'We're just waiting for a signal.'

She nodded, and he gave her a quick kiss before continuing on his way.

_Waiting for a signal . . ._

* * *

**Lorna**

On the other side of the city, Genn and Darius were preparing to lead the second group. Lorna had been helping with weapon distribution and rallying the troops.

'Lorna,' Darius said. 'We're ready now. Send up the flare.'

Lorna nodded and turned away , making her way over to the firework standing in the grass nearby, waiting to be lit.

'Miss Crowley, if you wouldn't mind, we have something that may be of some use.'

Lorna stopped to regard the man, one of the residents from Emberstone village, if she remembered correctly.

'At the moment, everything we can get will be of use,' she replied. 'What is it?'

He gestured toward his left, and as Lorna's eyes drunk in the sight, she smiled.

* * *

**Kathryn**

A single, red flare shot into the sky, and upon seeing it, Liam turned towards Kathryn.

'That's what we were waiting for,' he said. 'Now, no matter what happens, just . . . keep fighting.' He looked her straight in the eyes, and she found herself nodding. 'I love you,' he murmured.

Kathryn felt her stomach drop as he uttered those words. 'This won't be the end of it,' she said. 'You promised!'

'I know,' he replied. 'But I had to say it. At least once.'

She managed to get words past the lump growing in her throat. 'You're making it sound like this is the last time we'll see each other.'

He put a hand to her cheek. 'It isn't,' he promised. 'It's going to be okay.'

She nodded. 'I believe you.' Those words came out in a whisper, but they held the same meaning.

'Good.' He pulled her into a kiss, and Kathryn desperately tried to block the thoughts of it being their last.

After a long moment he pulled away. 'We have a city to fight for.' He turned away and mounted his horse. That was when Kathryn knew she had to meld into the crowd. She turned away towards the supplies and picked up a sword, and then after a moment of staring at a gun, she also slipped it into her belt.

Liam was at the head of the group. His horse nickered anxiously, as though it knew what they were going in to. 'The Forsaken think we're weak!' he shouted. 'A broken people! They think we'll roll over like a scared dog!' There was a moment's pause. 'How wrong they are! We will fight them in the fields until the last trench collapses and the last cannon is silenced!

'We will fight them on the streets until the last shot is fired! And when there's no more ammunition, we'll crush their skulls with the stones that pave our city! We will fight them in the alleys, until our knuckles are skinned and bloody and our rapiers lay on the ground shattered!

'And if we find ourselves surrounded and disarmed . . . wounded and without hope . . . we will lift our heads in defiance and spit in their faces!'

The horse paced back and forth as he raised his sword in the air. 'But we will . . . _NEVER SURRENDER!'_

The horse turned onto the bridge to face the city, and it was then that he unleashed the full fury of everyone there. '_FOR GILNEAS!_'

With an almighty roar the militia charged, over the bridge and into the city. Kathryn felt the rage stir in her own heart and she roared with them, running near the head of the group.

The onslaught slammed into the Merchant Square and all of the Forsaken positioned there, and two forces of almost equal power battled it out. From the moment that Kathryn tore through the first of the enemy, she no longer required her sword. Every moment thereafter, she fought with the ferocity of a beast; a worgen.

The square was not like she remembered from so long ago. All of the brightly coloured stalls had gone to ruin, and almost everything was overturned and broken. It had the air of being conquered – not that it would stay like that for long. They would fight tooth and nail to win back their city, no matter the cost.

The Forsaken were mainly foot soldiers here, all considerably better armed than the Gilneans and putting up an equally good fight.

That simply meant that Kathryn would have to double her efforts.

She shredded and tore, snapped bones and crushed skulls. It was now that she was truly being put to the test. And quite frankly, she revelled in it. Many a blade may have pierced her skin, but she simply brushed it off, whirling around and viciously mauling whoever was at the other end of the said weapon.

They pressed the attack further down the square, but once they were becoming close to reaching the descent to the Military District, dark rangers, all mounted on skeletal war horses joined the fray. It would require more than a single warrior to take one of those down.

Apparently that thought had crossed more than just Kathryn's mind. A small group broke off from the pack of Gilneans and focused their attention on the nearest ranger. A vicious flurry of blades ran down on her, and despite her putting up a remarkably good fight against so many combatants, she fell soon after.

Without even batting an eyelid, the militia went straight for the next.

Kathryn began to lead the descent down the steps into the Military District, and as more of the Forsaken fell, the pack behind her grew. Soon enough, the entire of the Merchant Square was clear.

The district was flooded with more of the Forsaken, mainly infantry once again, however the bridge leading to it was blocked by a horde of abominations.

'Lorna!' Liam's voice rang over the noise and Kathryn's attention snapped to a group making their appearance just ahead of them. A group of men were rolling in a number of cannons alongside Lorna.

'The villagers were thankful to have Emberstone back,' she called. 'They brought us a little something to help against the Forsaken.'

'You're a sight for sore eyes,' he replied. He then made to give the order. 'Let's get those cannons manned. The rest of you, lure the abominations into the open.'

A small chunk of people, including Kathryn broke off and made their way over to the cannons, which were now getting pushed over to the steps for a height advantage. The rest of them focused their attention on the abominations.

Using what arm strength she had, Kathryn adjusted the heavy cannon so it pointed straight into the middle of the pack of gargantuan monstrosities. She loaded one of the cannonballs in, and lit the fuse.

_BOOM!_

Hers was not the only one to go off at that time; in fact, the amount that did caused the ground in the entirety of the vicinity to tremble a little.

The cannonballs ploughed into the abominations, effectively killing them and even knocking a few off the small, stone bridge and into the canal. Those who weren't immediately killed by the sheer force of it were dealt with by the Gilneans that had surged forward.

Kathryn loaded another cannonball and angled it so it would be able to take out the last of the abominations, and set it off as well. Though the bridge no longer looked very stable afterwards, it cleared the way.

They were now pushing through in the direction towards the jail, near the centre of the district. The ground had long since become littered with the fallen, and Kathryn just prayed there were no necromancers among the Forsaken's ranks. They wouldn't stand a chance if that was the case.

'Crowley's troops are up ahead!' Liam shouted. 'Press on!'

And press on they did. All of the worgen Kathryn had seen at Tal'doren were in a giant pack at the other end of the district, just in front of the jail, and the Gilneans fought their way over to them.

Just as they reached them, there was the sound of a building cracking under pressure and something enormous leapt down from atop the prison and into the courtyard.

'GOREROT CRUSH PUNY WORGEN!'

Just looking at it, it was rather easy to see how it got its name.

Gorerot was absolutely colossal (it made an abomination look miniscule) but bore the same appearance of being sewn together from multiple corpses and looked just as disgusting. Kathryn found it odd that the very first thing she could relate its face to was an extremely warped armadillo of sorts.

Don't question it. That was how her mind worked.

Instantly everyone's attention was turned to Gorerot, and the worgen forces charged into the courtyard while Liam's group held back the rest of the Forsaken still in the district. Kathryn followed her kin, determined to be of as much help as she could.

Despite the damage the worgen were inflicting on Gorerot, it constantly seemed remotely unfazed, easily swiping away warriors as though they were flies. Though judging by the way it was bellowing, they irritated it more than flies generally would.

'He's too strong!' Darius bellowed. 'Use the catapults to bring him down!'

A small number of worgen ran over to some of the burning Forsaken catapults positioned around the courtyard. Kathryn was among them, and leapt into the nearest catapult before loading some burning ammunition into the arm. She jumped into the seat and pulled a lever, sending it flying. It hit Gorerot with a sizzling sound of impact, and it roared in pain. Soon it was getting bombarded with a number of flaming missiles, and suffering greatly from the damage being dealt. Kathryn loaded more ammunition and continued firing. The catapult however, was also breaking as it steadily went down in flames. Right when Kathryn was worried she would lose her weapon too soon, Gorerot went down with an anguished bellow. She barely had enough time to leap out of the seat before the catapult exploded, sending debris everywhere.

The worgen were already starting to leave the courtyard, regrouping with Liam's forces.

'Let us join your father's force, Liam,' Darius said. 'They'll need our help against Sylvanas.'

At Liam's agreement, the considerably larger group then made their way out of the Military District. Up ahead, another group of militia ran past the street they were moving up, and into Greymane Court.

'Block their retreat, Liam!' Genn yelled as they passed. 'We've got them right where we want them!'

Liam's group broke off and moved ahead, before disappearing out of sight. Darius' pack of worgen turned into Greymane court just as Kathryn heard Genn bellow, '_SYLVANAS!_'

Right in the middle of the court, the former high elf Kathryn could only assume to be Sylvanas Windrunner was mounted atop a skeletal war horse, just like her other dark rangers. She was surrounded by a group of Forsaken aiming to defend her, and two banshees flanked her side.

The worgen didn't hesitate to charge forward, landing a violent attack upon the skeleton foot soldiers. Kathryn was aiming for Sylvanas herself – she still stuck with the same belief to take out the head of the problem. The majority of the militia, including Greymane, had the same idea. At some point during that, Liam's group came back through and joined the fray.

Sylvanas was no amateur in regards to fighting. She was keeping off at least eight separate attacks without even seeming to break a sweat. That just spurred Kathryn to fight with even more ferocity, and landing more satisfactory results.

Finally, the banshee queen seemed to grow irritated.

'Enough!' she shouted. She swung her blade around in an arc, and an invisible force knocked everyone back. Sliding her blade into its sheath, she then drew a bow and nocked an arrow with a black-tinted head.

'Let's see how brave Gilneas gets on without its stubborn leader!' she shouted. Kathryn felt her stomach drop when she raised the bow and took aim – straight at Greymane.

Liam had the same idea.

'_FATHER!'_

Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. The arrow was released from the string, and Kathryn knew that Sylvanas Windrunner never missed a shot. But as it sailed through the air, Liam did something she should have seen coming. He shoved his father out of the way, leaving himself right in the arrow's path. It flew true, and buried itself deep in his chest.

Liam's eyes widened, and he dropped to his knees.

Kathryn was the first to react. She cried out, running to his side and easing him to the ground. He was gasping, and Kathryn knew by what she had seen of the arrow before what effect it would have.

'No,' she whispered, wide-eyed and shaking. 'No, _no_, please, _NO!_'

Sylvanas tutted. 'Such a waste. That arrow's poison was not meant to be wasted on your whelp. We'll meet again, Genn!' She turned, and her horse galloped out of the court.

'_LIAM!' _Genn roared. '_NO!_' He also ran to his son's side, putting a hand to the face Kathryn had cradled in her lap. She had changed back into her human form, but she didn't care. Her heart was pounding at an alarming rate, and tears were slipping freely down her cheeks.

'You promised, Liam,' she whispered, sounding horribly choked up. 'You promised we'd make it through this.'

'I know,' he murmured, his breathing harsh and laboured. 'I know. But remember -' He stopped and took a harsh breath. '- remember what else I told you. This morning.'

'I'll never forget that,' she breathed. 'Never.'

She leant down and pressed a kiss – their final one – to his lips. She could taste her own tears, which were still flooding down her face. She pulled away and put her mouth close to his ear as she whispered something only they could hear. 'I love you, too. And I'll never stop. I promise you that.'

A small, pained, but genuine smile pulled on his lips. 'That's all I needed to hear,' he managed. His gaze then focused on his father.

'We did it, father . . .'

Genn nodded, also a human once again, and grieving as much as Kathryn. Liam weakly took his hand.

'We took back our city . . .' he whispered, 'we took back . . .'

The hand went limp, and Liam's eyes became dull. Kathryn knew he was gone.

_Gone._

'_No . . . No . . . NO! N-n-' _She choked out a sob and pressed another kiss to his forehead as Genn bowed his head. She gently set Liam's head on the ground and got to her feet, feeling awfully light.

Tilting her head toward the sky, she screamed. It was a long, anguished and piercing sound, but it only conveyed the smallest fraction of the grief she felt.

'I WILL FIND YOU, SYLVANAS! I WILL! AND WHEN I DO, YOU WON'T LIVE TO SEE ANOTHER SUNRISE! I WILL CRUSH YOUR SKULL MYSELF, BITCH! YOU WILL SUFFER AS YOU DESERVE, AND EVEN THEN IT WON'T BE ENOUGH! NEVER IN _HELL_ ITSELF! AND -' Her final words were overcome with a harsh sob, and she couldn't go on.

She crumpled to the ground again, but seconds later was enveloped in warm arms as someone rushed forward. Lorna.

'Shh,' she whispered, as Kathryn buried her face in her chest. 'Shh . . .'

The Forsaken were driven back that day, and the Gilneans presently held three of the four districts. But the cost was too great to make up for it.

* * *

**Goodbye, Liam . . .**

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**Last edited: 17/1/16  
**


	20. Vengeance or Survival

**Well, after this there's technically one more chapter. But there's still an Epilogue, because I want this to be exactly 22 chapters like the goblin starting experience.**

* * *

_**20 – Vengeance or Survival**_

**Kathryn**

Precious time could not be wasted on grief, they said. And as much as Kathryn wanted nothing to do with that, she knew it was true.

'Come on, Kathryn,' Lorna said. 'We will mourn when this is all over but not a day sooner. We will not allow ourselves the luxury of grief while the enemy still breathes Gilnean air.'

Kathryn nodded. The tears on her face were drying out, though she felt there was still so much pent up inside of her.

'My father's men are ready to strike while we still have the Banshee Queen's trail. Just say the word if you're ready.' She paused, before adding something else. 'Liam deserves swift vengeance.'

It was not even ten minutes since Sylvanas had fled. Liam's body had been moved into one of the nearest buildings, and Kathryn knew Genn was in there, grieving over the loss of his son.

A shadow fell over them and Lorna looked up. 'Tobias.'

Tobias Mistmantle, as human as he ever was when Kathryn had known him, extended his hand Kathryn. She took it and got to her feet, yet Lorna's hand never left the small of her back. The other woman then moved forward to murmur something in Tobias' ear, but Kathryn couldn't have cared less if it had something to do with her. Her head was heavy and felt as though it were filled with fog. She wasn't even sure if she could speak right now.

Tobias looked her in the eye. 'Let us go at once.' When Kathryn made no move, he added something. 'We will track Sylvanas down.'

At that comment, Kathryn's head snapped up, and she was instantly seething. 'Then what are you waiting for, man?' she cried. She had taken off before he could properly register her sudden change in attitude.

It was only when he ran to catch up to her that she didn't know where she was going. In answer to the question she then posed, he answered, 'there is a camp just north of the Cathedral District.'

'Then we go in and kill every cursed one of them,' Kathryn hissed.

Tobias caught a firm grip on her wrist. 'No. We must be careful. '

She glared, but he didn't back down. 'We must. What we do thereafter will depend on it.'

* * *

The pair of them had ducked low behind a wall, where someone was giving orders. Kathryn wasn't listening; she was focusing intently on a cobblestone, and letting her mind wander to a few hours ago.

'Did you hear that, Kathryn?' Tobias asked. Her head snapped up, and she shook it mutely. 'Sylvanas is headed to the cathedral. Let's hurry!'

The crept back along the wall, keeping low until they reached the steps to the cathedral, then running inside before they were seen.

The building was just as damaged as the last time Kathryn had seen it, but she was still at a loss in regards to what they were supposed to do now.

'Quick,' Tobias said. 'Hide in the water.'

On either side of the room there were semicircle shaped indentations where the wood ended with a rail, and the remaining space was filled with water. They both climbed over the railing and dropped into the water; thankfully it was deep enough that they could keep out of sight.

'And now we wait,' Tobias said, his voice low. Kathryn, suffering severely in regards to her height disadvantage, held on to the wood with the tips of her fingers to prevent splashing.

After a few minutes, there was the clacking sound of boots against wood, drawing nearer. Three figures entered the cathedral; an orc general, one of the Forsaken, and . . . Sylvanas herself. Kathryn felt herself start shaking in anger. She needed to go out there _right now_ and –

Tobias grabbed her by the shoulder, the warning in his eyes enough to hold her back.

'It appears as if you're losing control of Gilneas, Sylvanas,' the orc said. 'Garrosh fears he's going to have to carry out this invasion himself.'

'You can assure Garrosh that this is a minor setback,' Sylvanas snapped, clearly incensed. 'Our victory in Gilneas will be absolute.'

'You sound very confident, your Majesty. I seriously hope you do not plan to use the Plague. Garrosh has explicitly forbidden it.'

'You'd do well to watch your tone, General. Neither you _nor_ Garrosh have anything to worry about. We've ceased all production of the Plague, as he ordered. We'd _never_ deploy it without his permission.'

'I will deliver my report to our leader, then,' the orc said, turning towards the door once again. 'By your leave, my lady.'

'Go with honour, General.' Kathryn could sense the dislike laced with her tone, and also detected the slight hint of sarcasm behind it.

The orc departed, leaving the Forsaken man and the Banshee Queen.

'My Lady!' the man said. 'Should I order my men to stop development of the Plague? Or are we to continue as planned?'

'What kind of question is that?' Sylvanas snapped. 'Of _course_ we're deploying the Plague as planned! Let the Gilneans enjoy their small victory. Not even their bones will remain by tomorrow.'

'As you wish,' the man said, bowing before hurrying out of the building. Sylvanas remained, but paced to the raised platform at the back of the room. She seemed to draw a slow, deep breath, closing her eyes.

'Just like Quel'Thalas.' At first, Kathryn wasn't sure she had spoken, and it took her by surprise. 'They put up as much of a fight, too.' The red orbs were revealed again, and she turned away from the back wall, walking to the centre of the room again. 'The things one will do for their homeland,' she muttered, almost bitterly. 'But in the end, the dead always win.'

There was a very long pause. The next sentence that Sylvanas uttered was so quiet that Kathryn almost missed it. 'And we aren't even the ones who are living.'

She closed her eyes again, almost as if giving that small, personal conversation some finality, before leaving, her footfalls echoing into nothingness.

'Let's go,' Tobias said, his voice low. 'Lorna needs to know this.'

Kathryn nodded in agreement, her mind still on Sylvanas. So she had lost her home to the Undead. The Scourge, most likely. And that was probably why the woman was dead in the first place. And now, she was leading an invasion of her own, just like what had destroyed her homeland.

Kathryn shook her head slightly, and a muscle below her eye jumped. No matter how sentimental that woman got, nothing could sway the hate Kathryn had especially for her in its own personal corner of her heart.

* * *

Upon informing Lorna of the information they had attained, she agreed with them that they ought to tell Greymane. So Kathryn was sent to the house that he was presently in.

She hesitantly knocked on the door, but when there was no reply, pushed it open. The front room was empty, but when she went into the bedroom just off it, she found Genn sitting in a chair beside the bed where Liam was lying.

Just seeing him was like he had died all over again. Kathryn very nearly staggered, drawing in a sharp breath and blinking back tears. Greymane looked up at her entrance. Grief was still etched into every feature of his face. 'Kathryn.'

She nodded and forced out 'Your Majesty,' before stepping forward. Her eyes wandered back to Liam again, and when she nearly choked, she decided that it was best if she avoided looking at him. So instead she focused her attention on Genn, and told him about the "plague" Sylvanas and the orc general had been discussing. She then finished the recount by posing a question Lorna had told her to ask: would they launch an all-out attack against the leader of the Forsaken or try to evacuate the survivors?

Genn shook his head when she had stopped talking. 'You present me with the most difficult choice of my life, Kathryn. As much as I want to exact swift and brutal revenge . . . I must honour my son's memory first. He cared for his people first and foremost.'

Kathryn swallowed lightly and closed her eyes. She knew that, all too well . . .

'The Undertaker's Pass goes underground below Northgate River,' Genn said. 'You must prevent the plague from being deployed while we evacuate our men, women and children to Aderic's Repose. I was told we captured one of the Forsaken's dreaded bombing bats. I . . . want you to fly the infernal beast as best you can and unleash hell upon those who seek to bring the Plague to our people.'

And Kathryn had probably never before unleashed as much hell as she did shortly after that. The bat had been chained and roped to a post inside the nearby stables, and Kathryn was loaded up with ammo before she mounted it. She had bags and bags of iron bombs strapped to the saddle, and was told that if she dropped them on large groups of the Forsaken, they would take out everyone in a ten metre radius.

And perhaps a Banshee Queen as well.

The bat screeched in irritation, obviously desperate to take to the skies. So Kathryn let it. They soared out of the shelter of the stables and headed in the direction of the encampment. In the distance she could see gigantic, glass balls that seemed to be full of some green substance, which must have been the "plague". She didn't want to stick around long enough to see what it would actually do.

Time to test out those bombs.

She steered the bat in the general direction of the nearest ball, before hefting a bomb up in her hands and lobbing it. It smashed straight through the glass before going off, killing everyone around it and taking out one of the catapults that had been firing the plague into the city.

After that, it fell into routine. Throwing bombs, waiting for the explosion, then throwing another one. She kept with that pattern until she ran out, but she was still overcome with the will to kill _every blasted one _of them.

But she had to go back. She had given the survivors ample time to take the underpass, and she needed to leave for herself. There was no point in getting herself further tangled up in this mess; in the long run, while they were here, Gilneas needed all the help it could get.

Now pulling on the bat's harness so tight she wondered if she was choking it by some means, Kathryn lowered it to the ground, back at the stables. Genn was still in the house, but Liam was . . . gone.

She didn't want to ask where.

'You've done well, Kathryn,' Genn said, giving her a small nod of acknowledgement. 'Almost everybody managed to make it through. It's time to pack it in - it's your turn now.'

He pulled a half-burnt torch out of its bracket on the wall and passed it to her.

'Take this; you're going to need it. The tunnel is full of nasty, knee-biting critters of the worst kind. Use it to keep them at bay. Speak to Krennan on the other side.'

* * *

Knee-biting critters of the worst kind – meaning rats, snakes and spiders that were large, but would fail to reach the size of those that had been skittering around Stormglen. Right little buggers, the lot of them.

Kathryn had used that torch to ward them off like they were a disease (they actually probably _were_) and swung when one got too close. They were horrible things, all flea ridden and dirty, and Kathryn had felt disgusted looking at them until she realised a few months ago she probably was in the exact same position. Then she just felt a little sick.

After that, she was lucky she didn't set the tunnel on fire. Fleas had that kind of effect on her.

The tunnel came out into a house and Kathryn looked around cautiously until she spotted Krennan just outside.

'Aranas!'

He turned and saw her. 'You're here, Kathryn. Most everyone made it through, but now we're stuck here. In our hurried escape for safety, we disturbed the resting homes of our ancestors. A grave sin, if you'll pardon the pun.'

'Come again?'

'It is tradition that a small memento be buried on top of a Gilnean's graveyard, beneath the shallow earth. The stampede of people fleeing these tunnels has unearthed these mementos and angered the spirits. Help me find them, please. We'll see to it that the dead return to their eternal slumber.'

Kathryn gave a nod of agreement – angry spirits would be the cherry on top of all her problems right now.

The entire of Aderic's Repose was a graveyard. There was a cobblestone path that ran through it, circling a hill with a tall peak jutting out of it. In the distance Kathryn could see a small building.

Footprints were all over the dirt and grass, and Kathryn could see where boots had disturbed the soil over some of the graves. Small mementos were poking slightly out of the soil, looking particularly out of place. Kathryn spared a look around and couldn't see anything, so she stepped forward and pulled out the nearest one entirely.

Completely out of the blue there was a piercing wail in her ears and Kathryn leapt back swearing loudly as the ghost swam into view before her. Shouting profanities, she tried to swat it away, but found herself becoming increasingly tireder. The ghost was weakening her – how, she didn't know, but she didn't like it one bit. With a growl, Kathryn fully snatched up the memento and turned on her heel, stalking away.

Stupid ghosts.

She paused before another grave, looking at the soil with a frown. She knelt down and brushed the dirt from an emerald pendant, and the memories hit her like a ton of rocks.

Smiling, dark brown eyes and a small pointed nose. Beautiful features and soft angles in the face. Golden brown hair that was always pulled back, with a few strands that always blew free. The same amulet resting against the collarbone. The pretty laugh that she remembered so well, that always calmed her, leaving her with a sense of happiness. A gold band on the wrist.

She had no idea how the pendant had gotten here. Her mother had been buried a lot closer to Gilneas, and Aderic's Repose was sacred ground. Not a burial place for mere citizens.

Kathryn swallowed and lifted up the necklace, half hoping and half dreading what would happen.

Sure enough, when she took it into her hands, the ghost of Anna Weiss materialised before her.

It was an odd sense, seeing her mother after so many years, even if she was just a transparent silhouette. But that didn't change it.

Suddenly Kathryn felt like a child again.

'Mama,' she whispered softly. The ghost didn't say anything; she just smiled, and reached out a hand to touch her cheek. It passed straight through her, and Kathryn felt cold and numb there.

'I -' She didn't know what to say, but Anna did.

'I'm proud of you,' she said gently. '_So_ proud. You have done what few others could, Kitty.'

Kitty was the name she had given to her, and only Anna knew it. Kathryn hadn't thought about that name since before she died. Just hearing it was like a punch in the gut.

'You've been so strong,' Anna whispered. 'And you've grown into such a beautiful woman.' She smiled softly. 'You're your father's daughter. I know he would be proud, too.'

'He's not dead?' Kathryn asked quietly. Anna shook her head.

She didn't know what to say now; she just stood there, silently staring at her mother. The pendant was ice cold in her hand.

'I know you'll do what is right,' her mother finally said. 'Just don't lose yourself in your head or your pain, Kitty. Otherwise it will take over you. Be as strong as you always have, and you will be okay. I know that.'

'Don't leave me!' Kathryn cried in a harsh, strangled whisper. Anna shook her head.

'I have to. The dead don't belong among the living. They will fail eventually.'

'What do you mean?'

'You will learn in time. Be strong, Kathryn.' The ghost faded as the pendant fell limply from Kathryn's hand, back into the dirt. She could still hear the angry whispers of the wind around her, but it was like a dull buzz in the back of her mind.

* * *

The offerings were enough to placate the ghosts. But what happened after that was a million times worse than angry spirits.

Genn, Lorna, Darius and Kathryn stood on the hill just behind the peak, where Aderic's Tomb was. The flag of Gilneas was waving just above the structure, looking lonely against the grey, cloudy sky. Sitting beside a hole dug in the ground just before it, was an open, wooden box.

'May the Light bless the spirits of our ancestors, for they've chosen to allow my son to rest upon this holy ground,' Genn said, looking over the box. The lid sat on the ground beside it. 'It is here, surrounded by the heroes and patriots of Gilneas where he belongs.'

'You were a true man of the people, Liam,' Lorna said gently, 'as you have shown me. Unlike any Royal I ever met. We'll make them pay for this.'

And they would. Because Kathryn had sworn it herself.

'Gilneas will remember your courage forever, Liam,' Darius said, his voice low.

Kathryn swallowed lightly before speaking. 'You were one of the strongest people I've known, Liam. You never gave up, but battled on, never letting anything tell you what you could or couldn't do. It is that which pays off in the end, and you'll never be forgotten. I promise you that, because you . . . you would have done the same for me.'

'You were my son, Liam,' Genn said. 'And there is so much a father cannot put into words, because it is conveyed through emotion. You died knowing that we had retaken Gilneas, and it will be like that again someday. We'll return, Liam. I swear this to you.'

Kathryn and Lorna moved forward to lift the lid on to the box. The last Kathryn saw of him was his lifeless face, and his eyes closed. Eyes Kathryn would never see again.

The wood slid into place.

Kathryn and Lorna stepped back as Genn and Darius lifted the coffin between themselves and lowered the coffin into the hole. Kathryn's throat constricted.

The worst part of a funeral was always watching the coffin disappear into the ground. It gives the whole ordeal a sense of finality – that there is no hope of going back. Because it is all over.

_No going back . . ._

* * *

**Review!**

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**Last edited: 17/1/16  
**


	21. Endgame

**And this is where it all starts to draw to a close :(**

**Make sure to review. **

**Cheers!**

**~Ice.**

* * *

_**21 – Endgame**_

**Kathryn**

They might've lost their city, but at least it looked like the dead had forgiven them.

Kathryn had left before the grave was filled in. That was something she just didn't want to watch. She wasn't sure if Lorna had followed along, but at the moment she really didn't care. If not, she was already at Keel Harbour, where Kathryn had just been sent by Krennan.

She made her way down the lonely, cobblestone road, rubbing one wrist with her other hand, deep in thought. If they didn't manage to fight off the Forsaken during the evacuation, none of them would be alive by tomorrow morning. In the distance, she could see a small collection of buildings and an expanse of ocean. So much ocean.

Dark thoughts were haunting her mind. Mainly horrible, extravagant means of slaughter, and the concept of revenge. But underneath all of the rage simmering on the surface, she knew she was too broken for such matters. She had finally reached the end of her straw, and had been wondering if she would go mad. She had a feeling she would. She had lost too much.

A solitary, rebellious tear slid down her cheek.

The one thing she needed right now . . . was gone. And she wasn't going to get it back. Never. All she wanted was Liam's comforting embrace; something she was never going to feel again. A face she would never look upon again, a voice she would never hear again, and _so_ many other things.

She only prayed the Light would help her through this day.

Soon enough she had reached the harbour and walked down to the square in the middle of all the buildings. There she was greeted by a sight that made her pause and widen her eyes.

There were boats at the dock, but not Gilnean ones. They were wooden, yes, but they were also purple, and built in an entirely different shape to the boats Kathryn had seen in her childhood.

They were elven boats.

* * *

Almost the entirety of the Gilnean population was gathered at the docks, yet they were not alone. The night elves had come, and brought reinforcements with them. Kathryn knew that all the same they would not be able to reclaim Gilneas today, but they were being assured escape.

Darius was there. He greeted her and gave an explanation. 'The night elves have made good on their promise. They've brought ships and are ready to offer us sanctuary in their lands.

'Unfortunately, the Forsaken's allies have arrived as well. The orcs are advancing on us while the Horde gunship prevents the transport ships from taking our people to safety. The druids are holding the enemy back, but won't last long.'

He gestured offhandedly towards the lines of elven ranks. Before them there were war contraptions of some sort Kathryn had never seen in her life. 'Fortunately, the elven ships were carrying siege weapons. We're going to be taking the glaive throwers and meeting the enemy head on.'

Kathryn got the message. She went over to the nearest of the elves and got a brief rundown on how to use the glaive thrower, and then minutes later, was advancing up the rocky terrain of the Headlands. Already everything was in chaos. Giant treants were lumbering about, swiping at the orc raiders and warriors gathered at their feet, and there were small clusters of orc war machines firing at anything that didn't have green skin.

It was time to test out these glaives. Completely without warning, Kathryn fired at a clump of orcs making their way over to a treant. It sliced through them as easily as one might stick a knife into soft butter.

For the first time all day, the smallest of smiles tugged at her mouth. It was time to unleash everything she had, and give these Horde bastards _hell_.

In short, she went on a slaughtering rampage. She fired the glaives left right and centre, blowing up machines and cutting orcs in half. And when they started to cotton on to the fact that Kathryn was the one to worry about, she finished them off by hand, ploughing an axe she had picked up from one of the fallen through their skulls.

Because a furious Kathryn Weiss is someone to be feared.

It was a pity that orcs didn't understand that. They charged in anyway, and thought that they would easily kill her before, well, she took them out.

The only problem was that the glaive thrower was taking a battering, too. If it had the hope of lasting longer, Kathryn would have run down Sylvanas herself – wherever she was.

But when it was starting to fall apart, Kathryn knew she had to return to the docks. Then, as she learned, only one obstacle stood between them and survival.

'We need to get rid of that flying gunship if our people have any chance of escaping,' Lorna said, scratching a hippogryph on the head. It made a screeching sound and scratched at the dock. She looked at Kathryn, determination in her eyes. 'Here's the plan. Keel Harbor had its share of rebel sympathizers in the old days. I've managed to round up a hefty amount of incendiary explosives from one of our storehouses. We're going to hit the enemy with a force small enough to fly undetected. These hippogryphs should do the trick.'

Without further ado, she pulled herself up into the beast's saddle and looked at Kathryn. 'They won't bite. I think.'

Frowning suspiciously, Kathryn reached out to touch the nearest one to her. It screeched and snapped. Kathryn pulled her hand away in a heartbeat, scowling. 'They're temperamental.'

Lorna shrugged. 'Just show it who's boss.'

Looking at it with a pointed glare, Kathryn strode forward and hauled herself up onto the creature's back before it had time to react. It made a noise of disgruntlement, but otherwise didn't react.

A small group of worgen fighters and Gilnean sharpshooters were now joining them on the backs of the herd of hippogryphs, waiting for Tobias to give the signal. Tobias himself seemed to be focusing on something far in the distance, and nothing was said for several minutes.

Then, completely out of the blue: 'Time to go!'

There was a flurry of movement as the hippogryphs took to the skies, circling about as they gained height. Tobias was at the head of the group, and Kathryn made sure to follow him. She herself had absolutely no idea where they were going.

They flew over the Headlands, going north, and she could see where the ocean curved around ahead. When she focused intently in the growing dots in the distance, she came to realise they were an armada of Forsaken ships, pressing their attack. Once they were closer, she also saw there was an airship flying above it. The airship was made of two separate balloons with a wooden platform in the middle that held them together. They landed the hippogryphs in the middle of the platform, but the beasts flew away just after they dismounted.

Despite that small setback, they were here for one reason, and one reason only.

'Attack! Secure the rafters!' Lorna cried, and the group surged forward, going either way and making to fight the orcs they had surprised with their entrance. Kathryn and Lorna stayed in the middle to knot coils of rope to the railing. When the last of the orcs had fallen, Lorna continued giving orders.

'I want two sharpshooters to stay behind and cover the deck. Everyone else, use the ropes to repel down. Let's give them hell!'

Two of the Gilneans stayed on either of the rafters while the rest of them grabbed the ropes and slid down to the deck. They branched out here, but a small group made their way astern a lower-set room where they found two orcs, presumably the navigators.

'Hands up, greenskins!' Lorna yelled. 'My men will give you your new bearing. You try anything funny and we'll fill you with lead.'

The two orcs, clearly seeing they were outnumbered three to one, stepped away from the wheel and raised their arms. 'Dabu?' one of them said. Kathryn had no idea what that was supposed to mean – she wouldn't have thought she would have any cause to learn orcish.

Lorna nodded at the group, telling them to remain. She and Kathryn then ran back out to the deck. 'The rest of you, follow me downstairs!' Those that were already there, and had formerly been fighting the orcs went underneath the deck. As they ran past, Kathryn momentarily caught a glimpse of some wyverns. They came out in what appeared to be the furnace room, and Lorna pulled some wired explosives out of her boot. Some of the others who also had some gave them to her, and Lorna spent a moment setting them up.

A group of orcs came running in, and to buy her more time, those who weren't busy ran forward to meet them. Kathryn lashed out at the orc, sinking her claws deep into his face and using the leverage to tackle him to the ground before she mauled him. She had barely dropped the carcass before she moved onto the next one.

'We've got the explosives in the furnace room,' Lorna shouted. 'Just hold them off now!' She got a firm hold on her blunderbuss and joined the fray.

Orcs certainly were good fighters, Kathryn would give them that. It provided a bit of a challenge, but in the end it was her feral instinct that won. No amount of steel could really beat that.

There was the sound of heavy, thumping footsteps and something dragging. There was a pause as everyone apparently heard it.

'That's . . . one big orc,' Lorna muttered. Kathryn looked up and felt her eyes widen.

He was a horrible looking thing, really, dressed in plate armour and having arms so long they almost dragged on the ground behind him. The ears almost appeared goblin-like, poking out sideways, but the rest of the features were far from that, and they barely seemed to count as orcish. Definitely not as revolting as something the Forsaken could put together, but definitely awful by orc – dire orc, even – standards.

He let out a loud bellow and lumbered towards them. Kathryn finished off her attacker without even looking at them before pouncing at the dire orc.

Her claws sunk deep into a bit of exposed flesh on his arm, and Kathryn was spun around until she ended up slamming into his back. Undeterred, she unstuck herself and clambered up so she was on his shoulders. She tore into his flesh, ripping and shredding, and causing blood to start gushing freely from all the wounds she inflicted. The orc roared in pain and tried to shake her off, but Kathryn clung on. At his feet, there were at least seven worgen trying to get a close up attack through his armour while the sharpshooters hung back at went for ranged attack. Their planning just made Kathryn feel like an amateur.

Well, an amateur that could get the job done, anyway.

The orc was clearly suffering from blood loss, and Kathryn had a feeling she was getting very close to tearing his throat out. But something like that took time, because his neck was _really_ thick. Also, Kathryn didn't really have the taste for orc flesh.

It was all suddenly over when she found it, and the orc crumpled with a heavy thud, sending Kathryn skidding across the wooden floor. She got to her feet, feeling slightly disgruntled, when Lorna said that the explosives would go off any minute. They were momentarily at a loss with what to do now – the hippogryphs were gone, and they had no other means of escape - when Kathryn remembered the wyverns.

Those of them that were left, about eight in total, sprinted back to the wyvern roost, and had barely taken off on their newly acquired mounts when the airship exploded with an ear-splitting _BANG!_ Flaming debris was tossed in all different directions, and Kathryn had to swerve violently to avoid a chunk of it. Soon after, the lot of them touched down at the dock. Kathryn was unceremoniously tossed off her wyvern when it decided that it didn't want to carry her anymore, and she slammed into the dock, her tangled hair tumbling all over the place. Lorna helped her to her feet, looking at the admiral for one of the night elf ships.

'If the gunship has been destroyed, we are ready to set sail,' he said. Lorna nodded in response, and following that, orders were shouted and the survivors of everything Gilneas had gone through were steadily crowding onto the boats.

They were leaving.

Kathryn swallowed lightly. 'We're going now,' she murmured. Lorna looked at her, and nodded slowly. 'Leaving this all behind,' she continued, chewing her lip. 'I'm not sure that I want to.'

'Why?' Lorna asked imploringly, taking her by the hands. 'I know it's home, but _so_ many horrible things have happened here. I would have thought you would want to . . . forget.'

Kathryn shook her head violently. '_No_. Never forget. Never. Because that means forgetting him, too.' She took in a shaky breath.

'Come on,' Lorna said. 'Let's get on the boat.'

Kathryn looked back, where she could see the peak of Aderic's Repose in the distance.

No stumbling through long, painful farewells, but short and bittersweet ones instead . . .

'Goodbye,' she whispered, so silently that even Lorna didn't hear it. 'I'll never forget you. I swear it.'

Lorna seemed a little insistent when she squeezed her hand, and Kathryn finally turned around with a small nod, her eyes glistening. 'Let's go.'

Together they walked onto the wooden vessel, making their way straight for one of the cabins. Lorna bolted the door behind them, and Kathryn stood for a moment in silence, before sliding her back down the wall and coming to a stop in a ball on the ground. Her chest had started heaving now, shaking with the silent sobs that threatened to escape. She felt Lorna's arms slide around her, and at that gesture she knew it was okay to let go. Burying her face in Lorna's shoulder, she released the bottled up emotions she had been trying her best to keep hidden, and finally let herself truly cry.

* * *

**Hang on, there's still an epilogue. Don't jump off the bandwagon just yet.**

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**17/1/16**


	22. Epilogue - Slowly Mending Brokenness

**Yeah, this epilogue, is shorter than my chapters. But it's not meant to be as long, so . . .  
**

**Thanks for coming along for the ride, guys. It's been pretty awesome, and this story has been fun to write. Even if I sorta broke my own heart when doing so.**

**And do remember that whatever happens after this starting experience isn't included in this, mainly because I'm tying up loose ends. Mostly. **

**Well, make sure to review before you go - those are something I really appreciate.**

**Anyway, happy Australia Day, even if you don't live in Australia, and for the last time, cheers.**

**~Ice.**

* * *

_**Epilogue – Slowly Mending Brokenness  
**_

**Kathryn**

It was upon stepping off the boat and breathing in the all-too-familiar air did Kathryn feel something crumbling inside of her. Granted, it was a feeling she lived with every second of the day, but right now it felt more . . . intense. Real. Shattering.

With the small, one year old boy who was barely walking clinging onto her first finger, they made their way down the abandoned, cobblestone road, a group of armed guards at their backs. No risks could be taken. There could be enemies anywhere.

But little Liam didn't know that. He took in the sights around him with wide eyes – the trees and rolling terrain that was nothing like Teldrassil, which was the only place he had seen his entire life. He wasn't used to the open landscape and the old, Gilnean structures. And he was only seeing all of this now because a few months ago Kathryn had begged – of king Greymane himself, no less – to come here. She insisted that her son had the right to see his father at least once, in case there was no opportunity in the future. Grudgingly, Greymane had agreed, but they were only allowed limited time. If the Forsaken spotted them, they would only have so long to escape.

They passed through the gates of Aderic's Repose, and Liam seemed surprised to see all of the gravestones. He obviously didn't know what they were. Quietly Kathryn led him to the incline that had permanently burned itself in her memory. Ghosts no longer haunted this place. Kathryn was relieved at that; she wasn't sure she would be able to take it if she saw . . .

The stone obelisk stood untouched since the day they had buried him. The dead had remained under the ground, and Kathryn felt a sense of relief wash through her. Curious, Liam let go of her finger and went forward on his short little legs, putting both of his hands against the cold stone. Smiling sadly, Kathryn came up behind him, and sat in the grass before the grave.

But Liam seemed to have realised one thing. He pointed to the grave and said, 'Dada.'

The fact that he actually knew that really hurt. But Kathryn continued to smile slightly and nodded. 'Yes,' she murmured. 'Dada.'

Seeming pleased that he was right, he toddled over to her and sat himself in her lap, talking to himself. Kathryn just ran her fingers over the light brown hair on his head, thinking.

Technically, her son was a prince. But in regards to how things had worked out, that wasn't going to be the case. Genn was well aware of the fact that he had a grandson, but had given Kathryn a choice. Liam could be raised as royalty, or as a normal child. It had been a difficult decision, because if something happened to Tess, Genn's only daughter and the person who, given time, may have been Kathryn's sister-in-law, Gilneas would be left without an heir. But Kathryn also stuck by her belief that royalty had to grow up too quickly. She didn't want to have to put her son through that. She had seen the struggle in the old Liam's eyes, and she did not want to inflict that on the child in her lap. So she had declined. Genn had also agreed that it was for the best, though his reasoning had more to do with Kathryn. He did not want unwanted attention drawn to her, because as far as the public was aware, Liam Greymane had no wife, and certainly no child.

Though that didn't mean Kathryn hadn't accidentally called herself Kathryn Greymane on the odd occasion. It didn't help that Genn and Mia also considered her part of the family. She generally got too caught up in this concept to pull herself out of her own thoughts.

Liam got to his feet again and went over to look at something. Kathryn just watched him.

Lorna, Tobias, Gwen and the Greymanes were the only ones that knew about Liam. Lorna and Tobias had finally gotten married a few months ago. Just looking at the pair of them, you would never have suspected they had gone through. The two of them, like Kathryn, had stayed in Darnassus instead of moving to Stormwind like a small portion of the Gilnean population had done.

As she traced a small circle in the dirt, Kathryn wondered how she was supposed to go about her next move. What she did not tell Greymane was that she didn't plan to return to Darnassus. Not yet. There was something else she needed to do.

'Pardon me, ma'am,' one of the guards said, 'but we must be going soon. We can't afford to stay for much longer.'

Kathryn nodded and got to her feet. 'Liam,' she called softly. The child looked up. 'Say goodbye to Dada.'

Liam nodded and walked over to the obelisk, hugging it. 'Bye, Dada,' he said in his quiet little voice. He pulled away and smiled at the grave, before turning around and walking away.

Kathryn sighed slightly. He was so innocent. He just didn't understand, but that was for the better. She herself walked forward and touched a hand to the cold stone, feeling overwhelmed by the intense sadness she continually felt. But here, it was _so _much worse.

'You would be so proud of him,' she whispered. 'I know you would.' She stepped away, before speaking again. 'We will reclaim Gilneas, Liam. That has been sworn. We'll come back to you.'

A gust of wind blew past them, tousling her hair and caressing her cheek. Somehow, she knew he had heard.

She turned away from the grave, taking her son's hand. 'Come on,' she murmured. 'Time to go.'

She focused her attention on the nearest guard, who was waiting patiently. 'You can return to Darnassus without us. I plan to travel south to Stormwind by foot.'

The guard frowned. 'Ma'am, I'm afraid His Highness won't like that.'

Kathryn nodded. 'I know. But he will have to deal with it. This is a decision I have made, and I have my reasons for doing so.'

'At least let us take you there by boat,' the guard pleaded. Kathryn shook her head.

'When you return to King Greymane -'

'King Greymane is no longer in Darnassus,' the guard said. 'He has moved to Stormwind himself, and is living under the hospitality of King Varian Wrynn. Perhaps you will meet there.'

Kathryn nodded slightly. 'Okay.'

'Please let us take you there, ma'am. For your own safety.'

With a slight sigh, Kathryn finally gave a nod of consent. 'Fine. Take me out of Gilneas, but then let me go the rest of the way on foot. I'm sure there are others that have need of this vessel.'

Looking relieved that she had consented, on whatever terms, the guard quickly agreed.

Kathryn had intentions of seeking out her father in Stormwind. She knew he had come from there, and when she had seen the ghost of her mother more than a year ago, she had said he was still alive. This had given her the slightest hope she could find him.

Sparing one last, sad glance at the grave, she finally turned away.

When they were back on the boat, Kathryn looked back. She was holding out better than the last time she had left this place, but it still hurt all the same. Nothing could dull the ache sitting in the bottom of her chest, save time. Only that was capable of attempting to heal such things.

In the distance, she could see the peak of Aderic's Repose jutting into the dark, cloudy sky, slowly becoming swallowed up into nothingness.

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**To answer that immediate question, no, I will not do a sequel with Kathryn finding her father. ******Not that I know of, anyway. **This is how I intended to end it. And second of all, I brought in the child, mainly for him to be the cherry on top of everything Kathryn has gone through. It was something I felt was necessary, because it's actually a pretty heartbreaking concept.  
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**I hope I tied this up well enough, and thank you. Make sure to review before you go.**

**~Ice.**

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**Edit - 22/9/15: Okay, I lied (sort of). There's a sequel now, which, granted, I published nine months later. But its still there. Look out for "The Colour of Blood" for more stories about the adventures of Kathryn Weiss! :)**

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**Last edited: 17/1/16  
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